Kirk Alyn

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SupermanTV.net Forum / Superman / Smallville / Fan Fiction / Three Minutes - Continued - PG-13

Posted:  05 Dec 2007 00:24
Sorry I've been slow posting the rest of the story from kryptonsite.com.

Note: I will be adding consecutive chapters to this thread as replies in order to not have to keep creating new threads.

Quote:



Chapter 6

(Chloe POV)

It was late and I was finishing up the layout for my first story since I’ve been back at The Planet. It’s been three weeks since they released me from the hospital and one week since I’ve been back at work. After I woke up the doctors made me stay in the hospital for another four days for observation before they let me go home. I was told to stay on bed rest for two weeks and then come back and see them, which I did. So here I am back at work. Thank god to because I was about ready to end it just from the boredom. I was standing up by my computer when I heard heels clicking heavily on the floor. I looked up and saw Linda Lake heading my way. Great the she-devil. Why is she even down here?

“I need 11 copies of each by tomorrow morning, and before my Macchiato goes arctic. Assistants just don't have the stamina they used to have.”

She turned around and started to walk away.

I raised and eyebrow at her. Who does she think she’s talking to. Linda Lake was pretty high up on the Planet scale and I didn’t want to piss anyone off so I checked my temper and spoke to her in a non-confrontational tone.

“Uh, excuse me, Miss Lake, with all due respect, I'm not an assistant. I'm a reporter.”

I heard her snort and she turned around to face me. She gave me a hard glare as she spoke.

“Of course you are. Unfortunately,”

She looked at my desk to see my nameplate.

“Sullivan, what matters is that I can see Gotham from my new office, and you -- oh, well, you, hon, you work below sea level.”

She was getting me mad now. I was tired and she was a pain. Forget being respectful. I held up a paper with her front-page story on it.

“At the risk of heresy, I would rather be snorkeling for the rest of my life than destroy a man's career based on rumor.”

She came over to me and got in my face.

“I only print the truth, and if you haven't noticed, I print it on page 1, section B every week.”

With that she turned on her heels and stormed out of the basement. Well that went terrific. I threw her papers on the desk next to me and finished up what I was doing. Right when I clicked the finished button my cell phone rang. I grabbed my phone and flipped it open.

“Hello.”

“Hey Chloe…you done yet?”

I rolled my eyes but smiled. Clark has been being incredibly sweet, incredibly caring, and incredibly annoying ever since I came home. The worst part was his obsessive ness was really starting to grow on me. I shook my head.

“Yea I just finished. I’m getting my stuff together now. I was just going to call you.”

I heard a noise on the other end.

“I’ll be right there.”

“Ok…do me a favor and bring…”

The whoosh of air cut off my sentence and he grinned down on me. I closed my phone.

“What were you saying?”

“I was going to ask you to bring my car keys so I could drive back to the Talon.”

He frowned and gently placed an arm around me getting ready to take off.

“I thought you were staying with me tonight Chloe.”

I sighed. I had stayed at the farm for the two weeks I was on bed rest at Clark’s insistence. I had gotten an earful from Lois about up and leaving her at the Talon. Clark and Lois had argued for over an hour about who would take better care of me. Clark ended the argument when he said that the baby and I needed proper nutrition and since Lois couldn’t cook and his mom could the obvious place for me to stay while I recuperate was with him. As soon as I got off bed rest though I went back to the Talon and Clark has been harping on me ever since.

“I know I said I would Clark but I’m really tired and I just want to sleep in my own bed.”

He tightened his hold on me and moved his head to my ear.

“Hold on…I’m gonna run us back to the farm so we can finish this conversation more comfortably.”

I stepped back from him and he gave me a questioning look.

“You think you could just pick me up instead tonight Clark? You know I love super speeding with you but just holding on has been making me a little sick lately.”

He smiled walked over to me and lifted me up into his arms like I weighed nothing. I guess to him I did. We were back at the farm in no time and he placed me on the sofa in the living room. I toed my heels off and moved over to give him room to sit. He sat down and pulled my feet onto his lap and started rubbing them. I closed my eyes. Oh. My. God. Clark Kent was amazing! Oh that felt so good. He gave me a cocky smirk and a chuckle when he heard me groan. I opened one eye.

“What are you smirking at Kent?”

He shrugged.

“You know Chloe if you moved in here I could do this all the time…whenever you want.”

I had to laugh at that. I leaned back into the pillow on the couch.

“That’s bribery Clark.”

He scrunched up his face and gave me a fake confused look.

“So…when was it written that I couldn’t use bribery to win you over?”

I closed my eyes again and grinned.

“It wasn’t written anywhere I’m just letting you know that’s kind of cheating.”

He kneaded a particularly sensitive spot on my foot and I let out a loud moan. His hands stopped moving so I opened my eyes.

“Don’t stop Clark…”

I looked into his eyes and chills ran up my spine. They were a shade darker than usual. I gulped and attempted to pull my foot off his lap without success. He held on tightly enough that I couldn’t get away but gently enough not to hurt me. I gave him a nervous laugh.

“I kind of need my foot back Clark…you know so I can get up…”

He started massaging circles on my ankle with his thumbs and was slowly working his hands to my calf. Oh my god…what is he doing and why does it have to feel so damn good? When he spoke his voice was deeper then I remembered it being.

“Relax Chloe…I’m not done yet.”

My throat went dry. That statement didn’t exactly sound like a friendly statement if you know what I mean. My heartbeat sped up and I could feel it frantically thumping against my chest. His hands moved higher, to my knee and his body seemed to get magically closer. He couldn’t actually be…hitting on me. I mean this is Clark…he’s in love with Lana…he only considers me a friend. And yet I can feel his body getting closer to me by the second. He brushed a piece of falling hair from my face and let his hand linger there. When did he get that close? My voice was a whisper when I spoke.

“Clark…what…what are you doing?”

Our heads were getting awfully close to each other, so close in fact I could feel his breath.

“I don’t know.”

He leaned in closer…I closed my eyes and….BRRRRRRIIING BRRRRIING…my phone started going off like crazy. It startled me. I opened my eyes and saw Clark blink, turn a shade redder then normal and back away from me to the other side of the couch seemingly embarrassed. I sighed. of course he was embarrassed Chloe…he doesn’t want to kiss you it was just a moment of weakness. He wouldn’t look at me so I just grabbed my phone and answered it. My voice came out a little sharp.

“Hello.”

“Whoa there cuz…what’s got your panties in such a twist?”

I moved off the couch and put my shoes on.

“Hey Lois. Sorry nothing. I was just heading home.”

I could hear the worry in her voice.

“You’re just leaving The Planet now? It’s kind of late Chloe. You should really think about getting your schedule changed or something. You shouldn’t be wondering around alone at night in Metropolis.”

She worried too much but she didn’t have to because I wasn’t in Metropolis.

“I’m at Clark’s Lo but I’m leaving now so I’ll see you soon. Unless you wanted something?”

I could hear her banging something on the other end.

“Nope. It was getting late. Just wanted to make sure you weren’t abducted by aliens or anything.”

That made me smirk. If she only new…

“Well everything’s fine and that’s a negative on the alien thing. I’ll see you in a little bit Lois.”

She said bye and we hung up. I grabbed my bag and went to leave but Clark’s voice stopped me.

“You don’t have to go Chloe.”

His voice was sincere but he couldn’t even look me in the eye. If I stayed here tonight things were going to be so awkwardly uncomfortable that it just wasn’t worth the trouble.

“That ’s alright Clark I should go. I’ll talk to you tomorrow ok?”

He hesitated.

“Chloe…wait…about what happened…”

I turned around and plastered a smile on my face.

“its fine Clark…let’s just chalk it up to sleep deprivation and male hormones…I gotta go. See you later.”

And I left. My car was waiting in front of the Kent’s house. I got in and headed on my way home paying very close attention to the road on the drive home.

(Clark POV)

The door shut behind Chloe and I groaned. This was not good. I just put the moves on my pregnant best friend. I got off the couch and started pacing around the living room. She left in such a hurry what if she’s mad at me. I didn’t mean for that to happen it’s not like I planned it or something. I just…she was laying there with her feet in my hands, her eyes closed, lips parted…and I just couldn’t help myself. I had the strangest impulse to kiss her so I just…went for it. I sat back down and put my head in my hands. I was so confused. I love Lana…so much…but lately I’ve been feeling all these different things for Chloe. I don’t know exactly when it happened but I’ve started seeing Chloe as more than a friend. My mind was working over time when I heard the front door open. I looked up and my mom was walking through the door. When she saw me she smiled.

“Hey sweetheart. What are you doing down here?”

I shrugged. She moved into the kitchen and I followed behind her. She glanced in my direction and went into the refrigerator. She pulled out some milk, took out cookies and put everything in front of me. I looked up and gave her a weak smile.

“What’s the matter Clark?”

I moved my head to the side and rubbed the back of my neck.

“I’m having a little problem…”

She nodded and waited. I hesitated.

“I kind of…almost kissed Chloe tonight.”

My mom just nodded again. She didn’t even look shocked. Why is she acting like I almost kiss Chloe everyday? I was waiting for her to say something and yet nothing came.

“Mom…”

“Yes honey?”

I was quiet for a minute.

“Did you hear what I said?”

She got up and walked over to the sink and sighed.

“Clark…this…thing between you and Chloe has been building for years now.”

She turned around and I looked up at her confused. She sat back down and put a hand over mine.

“Clark…you and Chloe have been friends for years but there has always been something more lurking below the surface. You have to have known that.”

I nodded my head. I guess I did know that to some extent. I mean after the whole Zod incident when I came back I kind of thought Chloe and I were gonna get together but it never happened.

“What am I gonna do mom? I have all these feelings for Chloe but…I still love Lana and wouldn’t acting on my feelings for Chloe be unfair since I still have feelings for Lana?”

“I know that there will always be a place in your heart for Lana Clark…but are you sure you’re still in love with her? You’ve been spending an awful lot of time with Chloe and I haven’t really heard you mention Lana in a while now.”

I shrugged. Mom’s right I haven’t talked about Lana a lot lately but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t been thinking about her. I got up and glanced at my mom.

“Thanks mom…I’m…a…I’m gonna go to bed. I’ll see you in the morning.”

I walked upstairs before she could say anything else. I got undressed and laid in bed. My sheets still smelled like Chloe. Wonderful. I wasn’t getting to sleep anytime soon. I rolled over a few times before getting comfortable. It was time to sort out my feelings and I had a whole night to do it...

(Chloe POV)

I woke up to harsh tones of Lois’s hushed voice. I groaned and rolled over. If she was trying to be quiet she sure had a lot to learn. After a couple of minutes her voice just seemed to get louder so I sat up and rubbed my eyes. I looked at the clock it was eight fifteen. Crap I had to get up and get dressed. I have to be at The Planet today at eleven. I was walking toward the bathroom when Lois closed her phone. She turned in my direction.

“Oh hey Chloe.”

“Morning Lois.”

I was rushing around grabbing an outfit and make-up when Lois stopped me.

“What’s the rush?”

I sighed.
“It takes two hours to get to The Planet. I have to be there at eleven and I haven’t even showered yet.”

“Oh..well I’ll just get out of your hair then.”

I frowned. That was odd. Note to self something is definitely wrong with Lois. I’ll have to look into that later when I got a chance but right now I needed to get ready. I hopped in the shower and about forty-five minutes later I was heading out the door. I got to The Planet at eleven ten and started in on my work. Twenty minutes later I was coming out of the copy room when I saw Lana heading down the stairs. When she reached the bottom and saw me she gave me a small smile.

“Hey Chloe.”

I smiled.

“Hey Lana to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”

She fiddled nervously with her purse handle.

“I need to talk to you about something…its personal can we go somewhere private?”

My face sobered and I placed my hand on her arm.

“Sure. Com on.”

I took her back to where I just came from and shut the door behind us.

“What’s going on Lana? Is everything ok?”

She hesitated before speaking.

“Everything’s fine”

I nodded and waited for her to tell me what was going on. After a couple of minutes of silence I spoke.

“Well?”

“Chloe, Lex proposed.”

I was shocked. I really hope she didn’t say yes.

“And?”

She drew out her words.

“And I haven't given him an answer yet”

I sighed in relief. He’s probably running around the mansion freaking out. Or possibly killing even more people because he’s angry.

“I'm sure that's going over well.”

She ignored the comment and continued.

“Lex and I are in a really great place right now, but when I actually heard those words, there was something that wouldn't let me say yes.”

Ah…I knew why she was here. Clark. It’s gotta be

“Something like Clark?”

She looked at me confused.

“Chloe…no. Why would this have anything to do with Clark?”

Huh…that’s odd. It usually always had something to do with Clark.

“Oh…ok…well then what’s the problem?”

She took a deep breath.

“I know Lex cares about me. He’s proven that on more than one occasion. But…I’m just worried that the only reason he proposed was because I’m pregnant. And I don’t want that. I want him to propose to me because he wants to not because of this baby.”

“Lana... I think that if you’re having doubts about his intentions then maybe you shouldn’t do it.”

She was contemplating me for a few minutes and slowly nodded at me. I could tell she didn’t like my answer though because her facial expression turned a little colder.

“Thanks Chloe…for the advice. I should get going though. I’ll talk to you later.

“Bye Lana.”

And a few minutes later she was gone. I went back to my desk and sat down. I can’t believe Lex proposed. Clark was going to be crushed. Poor Clark… I shook my head and glanced at the paperwork on my desk. I could use some coffee and food. I was starving. I rubbed my stomach, which was starting to swell just a bit and thought of where I could get food. I looked at my cell phone for a few minutes hoping it would ring. When it didn’t I picked it up and called Clark. After three rings he picked up.

“Hey Chloe.”

I smiled. I would not let things be weird…just play it cool Chloe

“Hey. Do you think you might be able to do me a favor?”

“Absolutely. What’s going on?”

I glanced around the office as I spoke.

“I’m really hungry. You think you can bring me some coffee and food?”

I could hear the smile in his voice.

“What do you want to eat?”

Hmmm what did I want? Oh I know…

“Think you could make a run to New York? I would love one of those hotdogs from the kiosks on the street.”

That sounded so good my mouth was watering. I heard him laughing on the other end and frowned.

“Stop laughing at me Clark. It’s really not that funny.”

“Ok…ok I’m done Chloe. Hot dog got it. I’ll get a couple and bring back everything they have to put on it. I’ll have them put that on the side. How’s that sound?”

My voice got soft.

“Great…thanks a lot Clark…I really appreciate it.”

“Sure thing I’ll be there soon.”

I hung up the phone and smiled to myself. Two seconds later it rang again. I rolled my eyes it was probably Clark calling back to ask if I wanted anything else.

“Hello?”

“Hello Chloe.”

I drew my eyebrows together. The voice sounded familiar but I couldn’t place it.

“Can I help you with something?”

“It’s Oliver…Queen.”

Oh. That’s why I recognized the voice. How’d he get my number?

“Oh. Hi Mr. Queen what can I do for you?”

“Oliver is fine. I was wondering if you’ve heard from Lois at all.”

“Lois…I talked to her this morning before I left for work but I haven’t heard from her since I left the apartment this morning. Why is everything ok?”

I asked getting worried. What has Lois gotten herself into now?

“I’m sure everything is fine. We were supposed to have lunch together and she’s about forty-five minutes late, which isn’t, like her. I have a meeting so I can’t wait any longer, but if you speak to Lois before I do will you let her know that?”

That really wasn’t like her. I wonder what’s up.

“Sure I can do that Oliver.”

“Thanks Chloe I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye”

After I hung up I tried Lois’s cell phone but it was off. I shook my head. When I get my hands on her she’s dead. I sat back and started to write my next article while I waited for Clark.

(Lois POV)

I was finally going to find out who the green arrow was. I had a lead on a guy who has pictures of him so I made plans to meet him. I walked along the narrow ally by the dumpster and waited. I heard a noise behind me and turned.

“ScoopGirl?”

I saw Jimmy…Chloe’s Ex. Oh boy

“Hotshot485? You've got to be kidding me.”

He gave me a soft glare.

“I'm not the one up all night tooling the internet for Green Arrow pics. Don't you have a boyfriend?”

I ignored his snide remark.

“Do you have the photos?”

“You got the cash?”

I rolled my eyes and pulled out some money.

“I don't get it. Of all the photographers in Metropolis, how is it that you end up with the first shots of our merry archer?”

“I have my connections.”

I smirked sarcastically

“No. Really.”

“Oh, well, guy doesn't get out of the suicide slums much, so I just hung out there for a few weeks... in my car with my pepper spray and the doors locked.”

I laughed. I took the pictures and looked over them carefully. No face.

“This is it? A bunch of arms and legs? Nice work, hotshot. I mean, you didn't even manage to catch one shot of his face. All these tell me about Green Arrow is that he needs a band-aid.”

I was frustrated. I waited all this time so that I could finally pin point who the green arrow was and now nada…zilch…nothing.

“Well, at least you got a good look at that.”

I shook my head.

“Thanks for a lot of nothing Jimmy. I’ll see you around ok?”

I took off on the trek back to my car. When I got in I was heading back to Smallville when I realized I missed my lunch date with Oliver. Crap! I stood him up I’m a horrible girlfriend. I picked up my phone and called him. There were two rings and then it went to voicemail. He must be busy. I left him a message apologizing profusely and telling him I’d make it up to him however he wanted. I shook my head this green arrow thing was really keeping me pre-occupied. I had to let it go for right now…until I got a more substantial lead I was wasting my time. I will find out who he is, and when I do he’ll wish he was never born.

(Clark POV)

I ran to New York and got Chloe’s hotdogs. By the time I got to The Planet it was about twelve. I saw Chloe sitting at her desk diligently typing away. I came over and sat down.

“How goes the writing?”

She clicked a few more keys and then smiled as she turned in her seat.

“Done! You came at the perfect time.”

“Good to know. Here you go. I got three just in case you were really hungry.”

She grabbed the bag and dug in. As she ate I watched her and took the time to notice the subtly changes in her body. Her hair seemed longer and her skin was flushed with color. She was wearing a black satin top and a dark green skirt. She looked beautiful. I looked down and could see a small bump starting to show. It really was an overwhelming site. She caught me staring and shifted in her seat.

“What?”

“Huh?”

“Why were you staring at me? Is there something on my face that you are neglecting to tell me about?”

I smiled.

“No I was just looking at you. You look nice today Chloe.”

She beamed at me.

“Thanks Clark.”

I really wanted to talk about yesterday with her but I was afraid she’d pull away from and I didn’t want to risk that. Things seemed to be ok right now and I wanted to keep it that way.

“Hey when’s the next doctor’s appointment? I thought maybe…if you wanted I could…you know go with you…”

Chloe gave me half a smile and patted my arm.

“You don’t have to do that. It’s a simple checkup.”

I shrugged.

“I want to. Your almost fifteen weeks now. You could probably find out the sex of the baby if you wanted to.”

She nodded.

“Ok…it’s on Friday at nine.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

She finished all three hotdogs and threw all the garbage away.

“Mmm. That was great.”

I smiled. Ok I know I said I wouldn’t bring it up but I have to. I don’t want things to be weird between us. It’s already bad enough I have all these unresolved feelings for Chloe I didn’t need this tension tearing us apart.

“Listen Chloe. I know you said that you wanted to forget about what happened the other day but I don’t think that’s such a great idea. I mean…there was this moment…where..we almost kissed. I..how do you feel about that?”

She looked hesitant to speak so I took a deep breath and went first.

“B..because at first I was really scared about what happened. I mean you’re my best friend and I thought that I might have…ruined things with us…”

She cut me off and put her hand over mine. She looked at me sincerely and spoke with a soft voice.

“Clark there is no way something as trivial as what happened can destroy our friendship. We’re more stable then that.”

I nodded.

“Yea that’s what I figured. So then I got to thinking that maybe…maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad to…kiss you Chloe.”

I said the last part low and she looked shocked. If I wasn’t so nervous I would have tried to document the one and only Chloe Sullivan being shocked into silence.

I touched her arm.

“Chloe you still with me?”

“Uh yea…Clark you’re probably just thinking like that because you're lonely. That’s understandable.”

I frowned. She didn’t get it.

“Chloe stop. You know…whenever things have happened between us in the past one or both of us has always backed off. This time I’m prepared to do something about it. I’m not walking away Chloe I promise. So I need you to stop pushing me away.”

I heard her heartbeat. It was erratic. She was just as nervous as me but unlike her I’m, done running from how I feel. I spent all night last night thinking. Chloe and I have been best friends for years. She knows practically everything about me and still accepts me for who I am. She has always been my constant even when other people have wavered…including Lana. I like Chloe…I need her in my life and even though I will always have a place for Lana in my heart and a part of me will always love her she is my past. And I can see clear as day Chloe being my future. She was sitting there watching my face. Then hesitated before she spoke.

“Okay Clark. No more pushing you away. But I’m not sure I understand what it is that you’re saying.”

I know that’s not true, but she wanted to hear me say it. She wanted to be reassured. I could do that.

“Chloe…I know I have a lot of baggage and I’m not the easiest person to deal with and I’m a little bit emotionally retarded but I’d really like it if you could give me a chance.”

She scrunched up her eyebrows in a cute gesture.

“A chance?”

“Chloe I want you to move in with me. I want to be there for you…for the baby. I want the two of us to be a couple and…I want the three of us…”

I reached out my hand and put it on her slightly swollen belly.

“to be a family…I know it won’t be easy…nothing worthwhile ever is. I’m probably gonna make a lot of mistakes along the way…and I’ll need you to try and be understanding while I put Lana behind me. But know that I want you…know that at this point in my life even if I could have Lana back I’d choose you because you’re the person Chloe…the person who’s gonna help me become the man my dad always said I would be. You’re already doing it everyday…”

I looked down for a second. My hands felt sweaty and I wiped them on my pants then looked back up at her. She had tears in her eyes and I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. I could see fear on her face but also astonishment at my revelation and possibly even happiness? I took a hold of her hand.

“Give me a chance Chloe. I know there’s a million things going through your head right now because well…you wouldn’t be you if there wasn’t but just…don’t say no because your scared to be with me…only say no if you honesty don’t care about me the way I do you...a…and if that’s the case then…we’ll it’ll suck but I’ll still be here for you, because no matter what you’ll always be my best friend.”

I sat back in my seat and just looked at her. That was the end of my long embarrassing speech. The tears in her eyes were threatening to spill over and she still hadn’t said anything. I don’t know what I’d do if she turned me down…to be honest I can’t even believe I got up enough courage to say all this to her but I’m glad I did no matter how it turns out. At least this time I didn’t run away from what I felt…I embraced it…


Chapter 6 Part B

(Chloe POV)

I woke up to birds chirping and the sun shining on me through the curtains. I moved my body back a bit and came into contact with a very large, very warm body. He must have felt me move because he mumbled something and pulled me closer against him. I smiled. I turned over in his arms to face him and he was still fast asleep. God he looks so peaceful. If only that expression could be on his face all the time. I started to giggle when I heard his snoring get louder. Ha-Ha Clark Kent snores! I can’t wait to pick on him about it. As I waited for him to wake up my mind drifted back to last night’s conversation.

“Give me a chance Chloe. I know there’s a million things going through your head right now because well…you wouldn’t be you if there wasn’t but just…don’t say no because your scared to be with me…only say no if you honesty don’t care about me the way I do you...a…and if that’s the case then…we’ll it’ll suck but I’ll still be here for you, because no matter what you’ll always be my best friend.”

He sat there looking so sincere. But I wasn’t sure if I could believe him. Not that Clark would lie to me but…I mean he has been known to hurt me unintentionally and I just wasn’t sure if I could go through that again. I was quiet for a while and Clark started to fidget, which made me smile. I looked at him…really looked at him. Things were changing and this was my chance; if I ever wanted to have my shot with Clark now was the time. I was scared, I wasn’t sure if it was going to work out, and I didn’t know how Lana was going to take the news…but at this moment I just didn’t care. I moved out of my seat and was in front of him in seconds. He looked up confused and I leaned down and pulled him to me. I kissed him and the minute his lips touched mine it felt like electricity was coursing through my body. I felt alive. God he was invigorating. Then he was standing up with me in his arms kissing me back. My hands wound themselves around his neck while one of his hands was on the small of my back pulling me closer and the other was on the side of my face angling my head to meet his.


I shook my head and smiled. Just thinking about it gives me chills. Clark’s still sleeping and I’m getting bored. Hmm I wonder if he’ll be mad if I wake him up. I moved my face closer to his and spoke in a soft whisper.

“Clark…”

His snoring stopped and his breathing pattern changed but his eyes didn’t open. All of a sudden his grip tightened and he pulled me over on top of him. I squealed at the quick movement and laughed. My voice was playful.

“Clark! What are you doing?

He smiled up at me and finally opened his eyes. They were shinning with good humor.

“Morning Chloe.”

“Morning.”

With his smile still planted on his face he leaned up and gave me a tentative kiss. After a couple of seconds I deepened the kiss and he wound up rolling us over so he was looking down on me. He moved his mouth down over my neck and then on my ear and finally back to my lips. Kissing Clark Kent was extraordinary…making out with him was literally out of this world. He new exactly what to where to put his….hands? oh my god. I pulled back from him for a minute and he looked confused.
When he looked at me his eyes were smoldering and his voice was husky.

“What’s wrong Chloe?”

Then is expression changed to horror and he practically leaped off me.

“Oh my god…did I hurt you? Did I hurt...the baby? Oh Chloe I’m so sorry…I didn’t…I didn’t mean to…”

And his words trailed off, as he stood their looking ashamed of himself. I shook my head and sat up in bed. Ok that all happened really fast. I looked him in the eye and spoke softly.

“Clark…look at me.”

He did.

“You didn’t hurt me…not at all…or the baby. Kissing you is…amazing.”

I smiled at him to show him I was serious. He smiled a little to when he heard that.

“I stopped you because um..well you had your…your hand it was…and I just…we should take this slow.”

He looked so adorable standing over there with his ruffled bed hair with an extreme look of confusion covering his face.

“What are you talking about Chloe?”

I rolled my eyes. Sometimes Clark’s innocent nature blocked even him from the simplest of things. I stood up also because it was probably late and I needed to go home and get ready. I saw Clarks eyes follow my movement and then look up and down my body. His eyes darkened again and he took a step in my direction. I held out a hand.

“Stop right their mister.”

He looked startled but did what I said.

“There you go again.”

And this time I laughed.

“Your hand was going into uncharted territory Clark…you know…places you’ve never been before…definitely out of the friendship realm of touching.”

He smiled then faltered.

“Well Chloe…we’ve upgraded our relationship from friends so the kissing thing…I kind of thought that came with our new status…unless you want to slow down…I mean I’d completely understand.”

He’s such a dork.. I was gonna have to spell it out for him.

“Clark this kissing is great and yes all the boundaries are different now but we haven’t discussed it. I would be insulted if you didn’t try to kiss me.”

He smiled and I continued.

“But I think hands roaming the lower…area of my body is jumping a few bases their Casanova.”

He looked horrified.

“Chloe, I didn’t, I would never do anything…like that without your permission. I wouldn’t just assume..I mean..I wouldn’t…”

He fumbled with his words and I laughed out loud. He looked at me and frowned.

“This isn’t funny. You thinking I’d do that hurts Chloe.”

I stopped laughing when I realized he was serious I walked over and put my hand on his arm.

“Clark relax. You did do it but it was totally unconsciously done. I don’t even think you realized it and that’s fine. It’s ok for stuff like that to happen. And I know you’d never force anything on to me so relax. I was only being semi serious. Jeez…this relationship is gonna be harder then I thought.”

I said the last part with playful annoyance and then gave him a grin. He shook his head and smiled back before pulling me to him and kissing my head.

“What did I get myself into?”

I chuckled.

“I’ve been asking myself the same question Kent.”

We got dressed and he drove me over to the Talon. I went upstairs and changed and when I came down I saw Clark ordering coffee and muffins for us. I cannot believe that Clark and I are an item. I shook my head and went over to where they kept the papers. I grabbed today’s edition of The Planet and started to read as I walked over to Clark…..OH. MY. GOD. How in the world did this get in the paper? I can’t let Clark find out this way I have to tell him. Crap! He walked over to me with a grin on his face and two coffees.

“Have you seen the Daily Planet this morning?”

He looked confused.

“No. Why? Should I have?”

I let out a loud breath. I really shouldn’t be telling him this it’s not my place but I can’t let him find out that way I just can’t.

My voice was gentle but a little frantic.

“Okay. God, I can't let you read this in the paper. Lex proposed to Lana.”

He looked shocked for a minute but then schooled his features.

“What did she say?”

Remember Chloe when you guys talked last night he said he would need you to be understanding about the whole Lana thing…she isn’t his future. You are…right now maybe if I repeated it a hundred times a day the bad feeling in the pit of my stomach would go away.

“She hasn't given him an answer.”

I handed him the paper. And he skimmed the article. He glanced at me with his brows drawn together.

“It says here it's because of me. Is this true? Chloe?”

I shook my head.

“No…I mean I don’t know. She came to The Planet yesterday and we talked. She told me Lex proposed but something made her hesitate. I immediately thought it was you and I said that. Lana said it wasn’t though. She said that she felt Lex only proposed to her because of the baby…and she didn’t want his obligation to put them into a marriage he didn’t want to be in.”

Clark nodded. I couldn’t read his face and that scared me.

“I tried so hard to not let this Lana and Lex thing bother me... if she marries Lex though, there's no going back. That’s it.”

I wanted to cry and I tried so hard to not show it. Clark being Clark though caught the pain on my face and his face softened from the mask he had on. He caressed my arm slightly.

“I’m here Chloe. I’m not going anywhere. Yea it hurts but I’ll get over it because I have you. What I meant before was that…if she marries him then all of this really is over our friendship your friendship with her everything. You know how Lana feels about secrets….and you and I have the biggest ones. Lex is out for some kind of revenge and I don’t want Lana to be caught in the middle because of us.”

I could understand that. Lana is like a sister to me and I don’t want her to get hurt. But she really does care about Lex and the fact that he’s been letting her see sides of him no one else does really isn’t helping mine and Clarks cause.

“We can't let her do this.”

He started to walk away from me. I turned around to catch him.

“Whoa, Clark. Wait a minute. What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to go talk to her. See if maybe I can talk her out of this.”

I shook my head. I held up the paper and waved it at him.

“Given the headlines from this morning I don’t really see you being on the guest list at the mansion. Maybe you should wait to talk to Lana another time Clark when this isn’t so fresh…”

“No the sooner we convince her, the better off we’ll all be.”

I sighed and followed him.

“Alright let’s go.”

He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to look at me.

“Your not coming. I don’t want you anywhere near Lex Chloe.”

I frowned.

“But Clark…”

His head was already shaking.

“No…please just…I need to know that you two are safe. Seeing you and Lex in the same room as each other…it doesn’t do good things to me. I’ll be back soon ok?”

I let out a puff of breathed that blew my bangs up.

“Fine Clark…whatever.”

He rolled his eyes and smiled.

“Don’t be mad Chloe. I'll see you in a little bit.”
He leaned down and kissed me before he left. I smiled as he walked away. He looked over his shoulder and smirked in my direction.

“I could definitely get used to that.”

I laughed and he was gone.

(Lana POV)

I heard the door creak open and rolled over to face the door. I smiled. Lex had a breakfast try full of food and a rolled up paper on it. I sat up and he placed the try down for me.

“You didn't have to do that.”

He smiled but it was strained.

“I was feeling alone waiting for your answer. I didn't realize I had so much company.”

I gave him a confused look. I looked down at the paper and saw the front page. Oh my god! Who would write this. I never said those things !Chloe…she’s the only person who mentioned Clark…damn-it. I should have known better then go to. I knew she hated Lex but I never thought she’d go this far.

“I don't know what to say.”

He picked up the paper.

“Then let me. "When I was with Clark, I would have said yes without hesitating." You know, the worst part of waiting... was dwelling on all the reasons why you might be stalling. At least now I know.”

He looked so hurt and even though he was trying his best to keep it off his face I saw it. I grabbed his hand gently.

“Lex, I didn’t say those things…I swear to you…I have been hesitating yes…but Clark’s not the reason why…I’m just…”

And then my phone started to go off right when there was a knock on our door. I looked away from Lex and at my phone. It was Chloe. Wonderful…she’s probably calling for a follow-up. I shook me head and Lex told whoever was at the door to come in. it was one if the assistants.

“Mr. Luthor, you have a guest.”

He looked at me.

“We can finish our discussion when I get back alright?”

I nodded and he got up and left to see who was here. I sighed. I needed to get dressed and do some extreme control damage.

(Lex POV)

I headed out of the room and walked toward my study. She say’s this isn’t about Clark…and yet the news is splashed all over the paper. Lana has never lied to me before though. Ever since we got together I’ve been honest with her…about the things I believe she can handle. And she’s surprised me with a few things of her own. I remember Christmas last year and I remember what it felt like to have Lana by my side. I wanted that…but I didn’t have to give up wealth and power for it…I could have both and I would. I opened the door and saw Clark standing in the study. Well, well, well speak of everybody’s white knight. He faced me and frowned.

“They said Lana was here.”

Of course after he saw the paper he’d come here…like a dog begging for a bone. The first sign that he could get Lana away from me and here he was presenting himself as some kind of prize.

“She was. But I'm afraid you just missed her.”

He glared at me.

“I'll come back later.”

As he started to walk out I moved closer to him and spoke. My voice amused at his audacity.

“So you really think you can convince her? You think you can talk her out of making the biggest mistake of her life by marrying me?”

He turned with angered in his eyes and I smiled inwardly.

“We both know that you swept in after –“

I cut him off.

“After you crushed her?”

He huffed and I had to laugh. Clark was sitting so high on his pedestal that he couldn’t see that I make Lana happier then he ever did because I don’t lie to her…well not nearly as much as he had anyway.

“You knew she was vulnerable, and you played her until she thought she was in love with you.”

I grinned. Lana is a lot more like me then he gives her credit for. I don’t know why he hasn’t opened his eyes enough to see that side of her…but I have. And I like it.

“If you really see Lana as that naive, you obviously don't think as much of her as I do.”

He looked mad…but he controlled his anger and instead gave me a small sarcastic smile.

“It must be eating at you that she's hesitating -- wondering why she hasn't given you an answer.”

Ok this has gone on enough. Clark might always think he is one up on me…but I have so many sleeves he'd never be able to crawl up the right one.

“Lana spoke with me this morning Clark. She told me the things that were written in this morning’s paper were untrue. And I believe her. That’s the difference between you and me Clark. I trust Lana because she’s never given me any reason not to.”

He looked away. Good that got him. And here’s a little salt for the wound.

“Why are you here Clark? Lana doesn’t want you back…”

I paused and right when he was about to speak I continued.

“What would Chloe do if she found out you were here to plead your case to Lana about leaving me for you.

He sneered and his voice grew louder.

“I’m not here to break up your engagement so Lana can be with me. I’m here because Lana is my friend and I don’t want to see her get hurt by you.”

I walked over to my desk and sat down.

“Well as I said before Clark. Lana isn’t here so if you don’t mind leaving I have things to attend to.”

He glared hard in my direction and walked out. I glanced at my laptop and opened a private screen. I entered the password and a video popped up. I smiled. They're not going to know what hit them…

(Chloe POV)

I’ve been at work most of the morning since Clark left. I’ve been looking into Linda Lake to be more specific. I wanted to know how she heard some of what Lana was saying to me. I called Lana earlier to try and talk to her but she didn’t answer. I guess I couldn’t blame her but I was kind of hoping she had more faith in me than that…guess not. Hmmm Linda Lake used to work in Smallville as a local reporter. I was reading an article about how she was caught in the second Meteor shower when I heard Lois’s voice. I looked up and she was waving around a copy of this morning’s paper. I grinned.

“So the old Q-Ball proposed to Lana?”

I chuckled and she sat down across from me.

“Is all this true? I mean is Lana still stuck on Smallville? Cause I kind of thought that ship has already sailed…with you know…”

She motioned to my stomach.

“with everything.”

I sighed. Yes that’s right. Clark and I still haven’t gotten around to telling everyone the truth. About the baby not being his that is. Clark wanted to wait until I got off bed rest so Lois wouldn’t freak about me staying with him. Then after that he just kept putting it off and I finally stopped mentioning it. I took the paper from Lois and threw it away.

“No it’s not true. I mean Lana cam by yesterday and told me about the proposal but she didn’t mention Clark not once. She was worried about something else all together and that why she hasn’t given Lex an answer yet.”

She grabbed the paper out of the trashcan and opened it back up looking intently at the photos on the page. She scrunched up her nose.

“You would at least think that with the billions baldy over here has he could at least afford to buy himself a decent toupee.”

She shrugged and I laughed loudly. She put the paper on the table and stood up. She glared down at me.

“Do I even need to ask where you spent last night?”

I looked back at the computer and starting printing.

“Clark’s.”

She snorted.

“Figures…what it is with Smallville that makes all the women of your Podunk town flock to him like a pack of oversexed morons. I mean seriously I thought better of you Chloe you’re a Metropolis girl…we don’t chase after anyone.”

I smiled.

“You wouldn’t understand even if I could explain it to you Lois.”

“Whatever…I’ll never get why everyone thinks Smallville's so great…but anyway Chloe I gotta head out. I’m meeting Oliver for an afternoon of yoga.”

I nodded to her and she left. I shook my head. Lois was the only person who could make Clark seem like the dorky farm boy he really isn’t. the thought made me laugh as I continued my search for what Linda Lake’s Meteor power might be…

(Lois POV)

Ollie and I were in the midst of bending our bodies in a way I wasn’t sure I was supposed to bend. He was standing over me spotting me and I was getting dizzy.

“Ah. Okay, how long do I have to do this for?”

He chuckled.

“What was it that you said, huh? Yoga is glorified stretching with chants.”

I rolled my eyes as best I could in my position

“Little bit different perspective from down here.”

He was moving his hands on my body and it made Goosebumps appear.

“Well, this is a good way to strengthen your core, trust me. Whoa! Oh!”

My Core huh? I’d show him strength. I flipped him over and landed on top.

“I didn't realize that my core was in question.”

His eyes were dark and he grinned up at me.

“You really want to keep talking?”

I shook my head.

“No.”

He kissed me and I started to grab his shirt and pull it off when I noticed the large bash on his upper arm. I froze. Those pictures that Jimmy gave me…didn’t the green arrow have the same gash on his arm? Oh my…Oliver tried to pull me down and again but I stopped. And pointed to his arm.

“Hey. Oh, it's a scratch. Don't worry about it.”

I raised an eyebrow

“A scratch, huh?”

He started kissing my neck.

“Mm-hmm.”

I pushed him away. I was still sitting on his lap though.
“How did that happen?”

He looked confused then spoke up as he tried to pull me closer.

“Um, it was a fencing accident.”

They don’t use real blades in fencing…I didn’t think anyway not when you were teaching.

“With a real blade?”

He tried to brush it off and by the things he was saying I could just tell he wasn’t telling me the truth.

“Uh, you know, the tip snapped off and caught me. Trust me, it looks worse than it feels, okay? I promise.”

I stopped him and got up. I kissed him and grabbed my bag.

“Thank you for all of the chakra reorganizing, but I have to go.”

He was still on the floor stunned and stuttering. Just the way I like them!

“Well, I mean, uh...”

I ran out of the apartment into the elevator.

“Goodbye.”

When the doors shut and the elevator started to go down I reached into my bag and pulled out the photos. I was right…the Green arrow had the same cut in the same place as Oliver. This called for some major research…I got off the elevator and went home to do some to find out if Oliver the man I’m falling in love with has an alter ego who has a fetish for green leather…


(Clark POV)

I rubbed the back of my neck as I started walking up the stairs to my loft. Lex really makes me mad. I hate that he can get to me. I wasn’t paying attention until I heard someone speaking to me.

“Smallville, sorry about the article. It's bad enough to have a broken heart, but to have it splashed all over the newspapers...”

Why was she here? She always just shows up and I’m not in the mood for it right now. I gave her a smirk.

“I guess that's what reporters do, don't they?”

“Okay, I think that little zinger just ricocheted off of Linda Lake and hit me.”

But she didn’t take the bait, which was odd cause she usually does. It’s what Lois and I do fight. But she wasn’t yelling and it made me feel kind of bad.

“Look, I'm sorry. People keep secrets for a reason.”

She made a noise in the back of her throat and glared.

“I don't know. If you ask me, I think a secret is just a big loophole in the whole "thou shall not lie" clause.”

I shook my head. Lois didn’t understand. She didn’t have any secrets that were harmful to her or the people she loved.

“There's just no gray area with you, is there?”

She stood up then and looked at me defiantly.

“Not when someone I thought I knew better than anyone has been keeping the biggest secret of all.”

OH MY GOD…She can’t possibly know. There is no way. I played it cool.

“What are you talking about?”

She walked closer to me.

“What would you do if one day you realized someone close to you had a serious hero complex?”

Okay, it’s official, I’m going to have a heart attack. I looked at her a bit uneasy. I have no clue what is going on and that’s bad.

“Hero complex?”

I practically squeaked it out.

“Hiding his true identity from everyone he supposedly cares about. You can't tell me you wouldn't find something wrong with that.”

Oh man…this is it she knows.

“Who exactly are we talking about Lois?”

She folder her arms across her chest.

“Green arrow, A.K.A. Oliver Queen.”

I was so relieved. Wait that’s not good either. Crap!

“Oliver.”

She nodded.

“Jimmy snapped photos of Green Arrow getting slashed in the arm exactly where Ollie's arm is cut. Plus, the time printed on the photos is exactly the same time Ollie disappeared on me that same night.”

What did I say to that? I mean it’s true Oliver was the green arrow but I can’t tell her that.

“When are you planning to unload this theory on Oliver?”

She smiled.

“I need proof first -- definitive proof. That's where I thought you might come in handy”

I groaned great just what I needed, an adventure with Lois…It’s gonna be a long day.

(Chloe POV)

I walked into my apartment to find Clark rifling through Lois’s purse. He heard the door and turned towards me.

“I swear I'm losing my scare reflex because of you.”

He gave me a small smile and then looked down at his hands in her purse and back at me.

“Lois asked me to –“

I cut him off. Who was he kidding? Does he even know who he’s talking to?

“Oh, please, Clark. Are you going to tell me why you're digging in Lois' purse, snoop dog? Wait. Let me guess. You're covering for the new pledge of your hero fraternity.”

He sighed and moved away from her purse.

“Last time Lois said she had a lead on the Green Arrow, she was just bluffing. Now she says Jimmy has shots that will help I.D. him.”

I was startled. Since when did my cousin and Jimmy work together? Especially now that we weren’t even together.

“Jimmy? He's moonlighting for Lois?”

He must have seen I was upset because he came over and wrapped his arms around my waist. I looked up and he smiled.

“Hey.”

I relaxed into him and smiled. I replied softly.

“Hey.”

I leaned up and he accepted my kiss. When we broke apart he was grinning.

“I haven’t seen you all day Chloe…I missed you.”

I laughed.

“I missed you to Clark. Don’t think that changing the subject is gonna get you off that easily.”

He moved out of my reach and leaned against the kitchen counter with his arms crossed.

“How are you feeling Chloe?”

I threw my stuff down by the door.

“Tired but fine.”

I plopped on the couch and Clark followed me over. I lifted my legs so he could sit and then put then on him last. He smirked at me and started to rub my feet like last time.

“Oh man Clark…you’re the best boyfriend ever. Hmmm it must be the non-human status. Just think get your very own alien from another planet…they train much better then human boys.”

I grinned evilly at him and he tried to look serious when he spoke.

“For the record... I prefer "intergalactic traveler" over "alien from another planet."

I chuckled and he continued his ministrations. I let my head fall back on the couch. About ten minutes later his cell phone rang. He sighed and picked it up.

“Hello”

He rolled his eyes.

“Hey Lois…yea about that I have a really great idea. Yea. A way to find out if Oliver is green arrow without having to tell him. Mmm Hmm. Yup ok. Give me a few and I’ll meet you at Oliver’s place. Ok….bye”

He hung up and I raised an eyebrow.

“Lois thinks Oliver is the green arrow.”

I laughed.

“I see…and you Clark Kent are helping her discover the truth?”

He shrugged and nodded.

“I gotta get going. I’m supposed to meet her there soon I told her I was in Metropolis so it wouldn’t take me to long.”

“Okay”

I lifted my legs up and then put them back down when he got up. He leaned over me and kissed me.

“I know we haven’t said anything about us yet but if it’s okay I’d like to tell my mom.”

I smiled.

“That’s fine Clark. Where not in hiding…I just want to make sure that one or both of us tell Lana before it gets all over.”

He nodded and then kissed me again…and again. I laughed into his lips.

“Clark you have to go.”

He groaned good-naturedly. He got to the door and turned to face me.

“Have you told Lois the good news yet?”

I scrunched my brows in confusion.

“What good news?”

“That soon she’s gonna have her apartment all to herself again?”

I looked down. No I hadn’t…not yet. Clark was going to help me move my stuff over to the farm after the doctor’s appointment on Friday. I gave him a sheepish smile.

“I will I promise Clark.”

He nodded and took off. I leaned my head back and decided to try calling Lana again it couldn’t hurt it’s been like eight hours since I tried. She can’t avoid me forever.

(Lana POV)

I was waiting in the study for Lex to get back from another meeting. We never got to finish our conversation from this morning because after he had that visitor he was called into a meeting. I heard the door open and I looked up from the book I was reading. I closed it and stood up. Lex smiled and walked over to me. I put my arms around his neck and leaned up for a kiss, which he returned. My voice was soft.

“Hey. Long day?”

He nodded.

“Yea. How are you feeling this evening?”

He stepped around me and put his stuff down on the desk then turned to face me. He was leaning against his desk with his arms gently folded.

“Fine. I was hoping we could talk. We never did get to finish our conversation from earlier.”

“Of course.”

I went and sat on the couch and he brought over two glasses. One with a scotch for him and sparkling water for me. I smiled my thanks and took the cup.

“Lana before you..”

I cut him off.

“Please let me go first. I have a few things to say and I don’t know how long my courage will hold up.”

I stood up because right now I really couldn’t sit down I had too much energy in me.

“Yesterday I went to the Planet to see Chloe.”

I could see his body tense for a minute before it relaxed.

“I told her that you proposed but…something wouldn’t let me say yes right away.”

I sat right in front of him and took his hand.

“But I swear to you Lex that thing…that made me hesitate…it wasn’t Clark.”

I could tell he wanted to interrupt me but I wouldn’t let him.

“No…I’m not done yet. Clark was my first love and a part of me will always love him, but Clark is in my past Lex. He will always have a place in my heart but you’re the man I love. The man I’m in love with. The man I’m going to be having a family with…a family that neither of us ever had but will have now.”

I placed my hand on my stomach. He put his drink down and moved to the edge of the chair. He put his hand over mine and I swear I could see tears in his eyes.

“Lana..”

He paused. It looked like he was collecting himself.

“I’ve been trying to interrupt you because this morning when you told me you didn’t say what was in the article…I believed you. There has never been a time since we started this relationship that you’ve been dishonest with me. So why would you start now? You never had to worry about making me believe you because you don’t need to earn my trust. You already have it.”

I had tears in my eyes and I sat on the table in front of him and he leaned in to kiss me. He pulled me onto the couch so we were laying on it together. His hands were going through my hair and I had my head against his chest listening to his steady heartbeat. About ten minutes later he broke the silence.

“A million dollars for your thoughts.”

I laughed softly and he smiled. But by the look in his eyes I knew he was going to bring it up. He wanted to know if I had an answer for him after all this…He spoke quietly and honestly to me.

“Sorry. My comic timing is the first to go after my nerves. You know, in all my life, I've... I've never made an offer when I was afraid of the answer. Till now.”

I moved so I could see his face better.

“You've been so patient.”

“Doesn't feel like it.”

The truth is he has though and he knows it.

“I have a confession to make…”

“I’m all ears.”

“The reason I went to Chloe was…I was afraid…

He looked confused.

“I was afraid that the only reason you wanted to be with me…was because I’m having your child.”

I sat up and looked down on him.

“I don’t want you to feel like you have to marry me because of this baby. I want you to do it because you want to.”

Lex looked incredibly shocked. Is eyes actually looked like they might have bugged right out of his head. He moved so he was sitting up more fully.

“Lana…what in the world would make you think I proposed out of some chivalric obligation?”

I shrugged and he sighed.

“I asked you to marry me because I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

He smiled.

“I can’t believe this is what you were worried about…”

I looked down.

“You deserve someone who won’t hesitate to love you the way you love them.”

He seemed to understand what I was saying and he tipped my chin up with his fingers.

“Lana, with the life I've led, I go to bed praying every night that I don't get what I deserve. You get bitter... and vengeful. And then you meet someone who's so good... that she might be the one person who could learn to love you. I would wait forever for that.”

I smiled through my tears.

“You don't have to. I’m sorry I questioned your reason for asking because now I see that I have someone right in front of me who I know trusts me... and who lets me see sides of him no one else does.”

I could see a small grin on his face and he took a deep breath just before speaking.

“So just for clarification...”

I laughed.

“Yes, Lex Luthor. I will marry you”

He leaned down and I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. My cell phone interrupted us. He chuckled and moved back. I smiled.

“I should get that.”

He nodded and then caught my arm.

“One second. Let voice mail get it I need to give you something.”

I walked over to the mantle with him and he pulled out the box my ring was in. I grinned and held my hand out. He turned and smiled.

“Eager are we?”

“Indeed.”

He slipped it on my finger and kissed me. Then his cell phone went off. He sighed and shook his head.

“I have to go. I’m sorry. I wanted to maybe go to Metropolis and celebrate. How about tomorrow evening?”

“Sounds perfect.”

He nodded grabbed his things, kissed me and left. I walked over to my phone and saw a missed call from Chloe I really should call her. I picked up my phone and dialed.

(Clark POV)

It was eleven thirty at night. I was tired. Oh yea…and did I mention I’m mad at Oliver Queen. When Lois first told me of her suspicion that the green arrow was Oliver I tried to get the evidence away from her so she couldn’t prove it. When that didn’t work I told Oliver Lois was on to him and we hatched up a plan that coincided with the plan Lois and I put together to catch Oliver. When Lois left to get ice the fake thugs were going to attack her and she was going to call Oliver. Cue me dressing up like the green arrow and coming to her rescue and then Oliver showing up a couple of seconds later thus proving her theory wrong. Nowhere in this plan did it say Lois kisses the green arrow. But boy did she…she laid one on me and I was so shocked I didn’t pull away. I shook my head as I walked home. Chloe was going to kill me if she ever found out. How do these things always happen to me. I got into the barn and walked up the stairs. When I got to the top I saw Chloe. I smiled and walked further in and then I saw her face. I rushed over.

“Chloe what happened? Are you ok?”

I moved her hair aside so I could see the cut better. She gently pushed my hand away.

“I’m fine Clark. No worries just a little work place scuffle.”

I gave her a confused look and she sighed.

“Short version?”

I gave her an affirmative nod.

“I found out who leaked Lana’s story. Linda Lake. She was in Smallville during the last Meteor shower and wound up with the power to become water or something. She was spying on Lana and I. When she heard me bring up your name she decided to put her own spin on what she heard. I finally got a hold of Lana and we talked.”

She grinned at me.

“Then we teamed up to get dirt on Linda Lake. Lana was listening and watching in the car and when things got out of hand and Linda and I got into a fight it spilled into the street and Lana accidentally hit Linda with her car.”

I was looking at her. She had a proud smile on her face and her skin was flushed. I have no clue what to say. My girlfriend is crazy…and I absolutely love it. I gave her a little grin.

“Well at least your ok…maybe next time you could call me just incase…I know you like getting involved with this stuff Chloe and I would never tell you not to because this is who you are. It’s one of the reasons I care about you so much. But while your making decisions for two maybe you should cut down on the dangerous activity. I don’t want anything happening to you…or the baby”

She gave me a warm smile and climbed over onto my lap. I moved us back onto the couch so my back was against the cushions and Chloe’s legs were on either side of mine.

“I think that can be arranged.”

“Good…now come here.”

She laughed and I smiled into her neck. God she’s beautiful. There isn’t anyone out there like Chloe. She’s the only person who can bring out the playful side of me and I love that a
__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  05 Dec 2007 05:19
Here's Chapter 7 Part A, it is broken over three parts per the 70,000 word posting limit of the board.

Quote:


Chapter 7 Part A

(Chloe POV)

I was walking down the stairs into the basement of The Planet when my phone rang.

“Hello.”   

“Hey you.”

I smiled.

“Hey. What’s up? I thought you were hunting down zoners tonight.”

I heard him sigh.

“I am. I was just checking in on you. I called the house but mom said you weren’t home yet.”

“I have that meeting tonight remember?”

“Right…”

I sighed. I know that he was trying to get the zoners back into the phantom zone and i really felt bad asking him this but I could really use him here.

“Clark, I know hunting down Zoners is your top priority, but if you haven't found anything in South America, we still have a situation back here in Kansas we need to deal with.”

“Dr. Casselli right? I really didn’t want you meeting him alone. How long until he’s supposed to be there?”

“He'll be here in 15 minutes.”

“Ok. I’ll make sure I’m there.”

I smiled into the phone.

“Okay. Great. I’ll see you in a few.”

I walked over to my desk and went through some papers. I couldn’t find what I was looking for and I wasn’t sure why. I saw a shadow on the wall and looked up. Oh crap. He’s early. Hurry up Clark.

“Dr. Casselli. You're early.”

I walked a little bit closer to him and then stopped about three feet away.

“You are annoyingly persistent, Miss Sullivan. I've already told you - I don't know anything.”

I took a deep breath. Relax Chloe you never have a problem doing things like this…just breathe.

“Don't sell yourself short, doctor. I think you're a very knowledgeable man. In the last few months, over a dozen patients have been transferred out of the high-security wing at Belle Reeve. And I believe that's your signature on all the paperwork.”

He was looking a little unstable and his eyes shifted all over looking around the room.

“Patients are transferred in and out of mental facilities all the time.”

He looked to the side then back at me. He was starting to make me nervous. But I needed to find out more about 33.1 so we can figure out what Lex is doing with all these Meteor infected people.

“Even ones that exhibit unusual abilities? Where are they transferred to? Is Luthorcorp involved? Does this have anything to do with 33.1?”

Dr. Casselli pulled out a gun from under his jacket and pointed it at me. I put my hands up. Oh god…why didn’t I listen to Clark when he told me stay away from the dangerous stories…right because I’m me.

“Okay. I'll take that as a "no comment."”

Come on Clark….where are you?

“I didn't want any of this. But it was so much money.”

I heard him take the safety off and my body tensed. All of a sudden a red flash of light flew across the office and Dr. Casselli fell to the floor unconscious and the gun wound up in my hand. I turned when I heard a whoosh of air behind me. Clark’s face was pale. He ran over and pulled me to him so he could check my body for injuries.

“Chloe? You okay?”

He put his hand on my stomach and shook his head.

“Chloe…you really need to start begin more careful.”

I rolled my eyes trying not to show how freaked out I was.

“Yeah, yeah. Just in the nick of time, as always.”

He looked confused.

“It wasn't me. He was already down when I got here.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“What? Well, if it wasn't you, then who..”

I didn’t even finish before Clark saw something and zoomed out leaving me alone. I snorted Men.

(Clark POV)

I followed the red blur all the way to a basketball court in the center of Metropolis. I stopped to look around the players but I didn’t see anyone. Then I heard a whistle and turned my head and there he was. I super sped across the court and reached out to grab him but he disappeared. What the hell? I turned around and came face to face with Bart Allen.

“Still too slow, stretch.”

I smiled.

“Bart.”

He grinned saluted me and then disappeared. Okay, I was definitely confused. Why didn’t he stick around? I tried to find him for a while before I gave up and super sped back to The Planet but Chloe wasn’t there. I went home and walked in to find Lois in the kitchen. I looked up and groaned.

“Don’t you ever go home Lois? I mean what’s the point of having your own place if you’re never there?”

She took her head out of the refrigerator and turned to face me. She gave me a sarcastic smile.

“Aw, Clarkie…are you implying I should move in?

I gave her a horrified look.

“Absolutely not. There’s no room for you here.”

I went over to the refrigerator and grabbed the milk. I went to drink it when Lois bumped into me.

“Use a glass Smallville…that’s gross other people drink that.”

I glared at her.

“Where’s my girlfriend?”

She faced me and smirked.

“You mean my cousin? She has a name you know….she’s in the shower.”

I concentrated and sure enough I could hear the water pelting down on something. I grabbed a glass and poured some milk into it. I sat at the counter and looked at the clock. Twelve thirty. I glanced back at Lois and took a sip of my drink.

“You never did answer me. What are you doing here this late? Is everything ok?”

She faced me and shrugged.

“Everything’s ok. I needed to talk to Chloe about something…that’s why I’m here.”

I looked closer at Lois and she seemed upset. I decided against busting her chops it wasn’t as much fun when something else was already wrong. We were sitting there quietly when I heard the steps creaking. Chloe bounced down a second later. She looked up startled when she saw me then smiled.

“Hey you’re back.”

I nodded and held out an arm for her to come over to me. She did gave me a kiss and then sat on one of my legs and faced Lois.

"Gross Chloe...must you and Smallville be so public

Chloe ignored her but I made a face.

“So what’s up Lo? Everything ok?”

Lois looked at me and then back at Chloe. I got the hint. I rolled my eyes lifted Chloe up and deposited her back on the chair when I was standing.

“You guys have your little female talk. I’m exhausted I’m going to bed.”

I leaned down kissed Chloe’s forehead and patted her stomach before going up stairs and crashing on my bed. Chloe could have been seriously hurt tonight. That’s the second time I wasn’t there to protect them. Thank god for Bart if he hadn’t have been there Chloe and the baby might be….The next time I see him I’m gonna have to thank him. The last thought I had before drifting off was Hopefully he’d make another appearance soon…

(Chloe POV)

It was early in the morning and Clark had already gone downstairs to start his chores. I was going through the closet looking for something to wear. Damn-it! None of my nice jeans fit anymore. Even my skirts are to tight unless they’re elastic. I stomped my foot and took a deep breath. I grabbed a dark green cotton shirt off the hanger and put it on. I slipped on black yoga pants and threw on green flip-flops. I went downstairs to find Clark. I yawned. I was still so tired. Lois was here until around two last night. She was upset about Oliver bailing on her again. If he only told her why he kept bailing I’m almost positive she wouldn’t harp on it. Oh well it’s really not my decision though. When I couldn’t find Clark in the house I walked out to the barn.

“Clark?”

“Up here Chloe.”

I walked up the loft stairs and paused at the top. Clark looked over and frowned.

“You ok? You’re breathing’s kind of quick.”

I laughed.

“There are a lot of stairs.”

I finished the trek up there and gave him a kiss.

“So I never got to ask you what happened last night because Lois was around…did you find out who it was?”

He shook his head no and I did a double take.

“Wait, wait…you’re saying he got away from you? I thought you were the fastest man alive.”

He started walking back down the stairs and I followed hot on his heels.

“Whoever he was, he saved your life, which is more than I can say.”

I rolled my eyes. Him and his guilt trips.

“Oh, come on, Clark. It wasn't your fault. Even with all your powers, you can't be everywhere at once.”

He turned and looked at me with a haunted look in his eyes.

“I have to be. I'm the only one who can round up the prisoners from the Phantom Zone and stop Lex from experimenting on people with abilities. Did you get a chance to find anything out about 33.1 from Casselli before he pulled the gun on you?”

I shook my head.

“Nothing, and I'm not going to. Apparently Casselli was in and out of prison before the ink could dry on his fingerprints.”

That’s what money does…Clark looked confused

“How'd he get out so fast?”

I shrugged.

“I don't know, but a Luthorcorp lawyer paid Casselli a visit right before his release.”

His eyes became dark with anger and his body tensed.

“Lex.”

I nodded.

“Casselli could be stashed halfway around the world by now.”

He sat on a pile of hay bales and shook his head.

“I'll get in touch with Lionel. Maybe he can tell us something.”

I walked over into Clark’s arms and kissed his neck. When I looked at him I saw a small grin on his face but it disappeared at my next words.

“I'll keep sifting through my Luthorcorp intel. Maybe we'll get lucky, and I'll come up with a few bread crumbs.”

He moved me away from him a little and rubbed his neck.

“Chloe I really wish you’d…”

He stopped and his attention was directed behind me. I turned and there was a kid standing behind us not too much younger then we are. I gave him a weird look. He looked familiar.

He grinned and sidled up closer to me

“Hey, gorgeous. What's up? You miss me?”

I raised a brow but had to smile a bit at his blatant flirting. But I guess he could see the confusion on my face because he clarified. His grin widened.

“I'm Bart Allen. We had a moment on the town last time I was here.”

Clark cleared his throat. And looked back and forth between us. He was still looking at Bart but his words addressed me.

“Two years ago, before you had a boyfriend.”

I beamed. Clark was jealous! That has got to be the cutest thing I’ve seen in forever…It’s most definitely an ego booster. I thought about it and then it struck me. I met him at the Talon. I turned around to face him fully.

“Oh! Right! Wow. It's good to see you again, Bart.”

He smiled, took my hand and kissed it.

“The pleasure's all mine, senorita.”

I chuckled and looked at Clark who didn’t look happy. I rolled my eyes. I glanced at my watch it was getting late and I had stuff to go do.

“Well boys it’s been fun but I gotta go.”

Clark moved to me and caught my arm.

“When you coming back?”

I shrugged.

“I’ll be home later and before you say it I know…relax I’ll steer clear of the devil for the time being.”

I grinned and faced Bart.

“I'll see you around.”

And I walked out of the barn leaving them to their devices while I went to The Planet for a few hours before my lunch with Lana.

(Clark POV)

Bart watched Chloe walking away and it made me want to slap him in the head.

“Mui caliente.”

Ok that’s enough…

“Knock it off.”

He looked over at me and smiled.

“Why man? She’s even hotter than the last time I saw her.”

I glared.

“Because she has a boyfriend.”

He shrugged.

“What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

My arms were crossed across my chest.

“He already knows…and he doesn’t appreciate you checking her out like she’s a piece of meat.”

Bart looked over at me confused…then realization dawned on him.

“Oh man…”

He clutched at his heart and faked stumbling.

“How could you do that to me?”

I shook my head and smiled at his antics.

“Enough about Chloe…What's with the Spanish?”

He smirked.

“Well, I just grabbed lunch down in Mexico, man. They got this burrito down there -- el intestine-o buster. You got to take a run down there with me to try one.”

I sighed. I really didn’t need any more trouble blowing through town especially something I couldn’t quite catch. I had enough going on.

“What are you doing here, Bart?”

He smiled deviously at me.

“I'm hanging out with my amigo, man. What's it look like?”

My hands were still across my chest when I spoke.

“That's what I'm trying to find out. Last time you blew through town, you stole my dad's wallet then swiped a priceless artifact from Lex. You nearly got yourself killed.”

He chuckled and he moved from foot to foot.

“Yeah. Yeah, those were the days, huh? Yeah, all right. Look, man, I already told you, things are different now, okay? I mean, back then, I needed a super-kick in the butt, and you laid it on me, and ever since then, there's been no more stealing for this gringo, I swear.”

I raised an eyebrow and gave him a disbelieving look.

“Am I really supposed to just buy that?”

His smile lessened but he laughed it off.

“Well, I could squirt out some tears if that'll help.”

I shook my head. Everything is always a joke to him.

“No, but the truth might. What were you doing at the Daily Planet?”

Not that I wasn’t thankful because believe me I was. But if there was going to be more trouble in town I preferred to know sooner then later.

This time he smirked at me.

“I saw Chloe-licious had a byline a while back. And I was in town on business, figured I ought to check it out.”

Chloe-licious? Bart is one of the only other people in the world who can super speed like me…I’d hate to have to kill him…but if he didn’t knock it off… I got back to the topic at hand.

“What kind of business?”

He rolled his eyes.

“I'm a courier. I pick things up. I drop them off. Lickety-split. Don't have a fit.”

I gave him a skeptical look and he looked hurt. He pulled his bag higher up on his shoulder and got a bit defensive but with less heart then I remember.

“All right look, man, whatever. You don't trust me, that's fine. Okay, I'll be gone before you can even blink.”

I remembered him saying that to me last time and I smiled. I appeared in front of him as he started to walk away.

“I don't know. I can still blink pretty fast…”

He grinned and my smile got bigger.

“Mexico, huh? Want to go get that burrito?”

“Excelente.”

And we took off.

(Lois POV)

Oliver and I stumble into his apartment making out and laughing. We had just gone out to lunch and had a little bit too much to drink. I tripped and Oliver grabbed me and started kissing me again.

“Whoa!..”

I grinned lazily at him.

“Now, that is what I call a three-martini lunch.”

Oliver chuckled and moved slightly to point at his wet shirt.

“It was a four-martini lunch if you include the one that you spilled on my shirt.”

I looked him in the eye and gave him a sexy smile. I eyed him innocently.

“Right. Well, how am I ever going to make it up to you?”

He played along and pretended to think about it.

“I don't know. Because, uh... it's my favorite shirt.”

I leaned in and lightly brushed my lips against his. My voice came out low and husky.

“Well, then, I think we should get it into the laundry so that it doesn't stain”

He nodded and lowered his voice also.

“Yeah. That's a good idea.”

He grabbed me and I practically ripped the shirt off as he was kissing me. He moved to my neck and started sucking on it. Oh my god… I closed my eyes and his lips found mine again.

Right when his hands moved to the waist of my pants his cell phone started to go off and he abruptly halted. I felt him sigh against my lips and move back.

“I gotta take this.”

I calmed myself and nodded him off. I listened to his conversation and wondered who he was talking to. This is really starting to piss me off. I love Oliver…but he is constantly running off on me and I have no clue what to think about that. What kind of guy is always running off on his girl when things are just getting good? I’ll tell you what kind…the kind who isn’t as invested in the relationship as his…partner. I heard his voice and listened more closely.

“Go ahead.”

He paused before speaking again.

“Give me five minutes.”

He hung up and turned to face me. He looked apologetic but I wasn’t letting this one go without saying something.

“I, uh...”

I walked to him with purpose.

“You know, what I had in mind is gonna take a little longer than five minutes.”

His eyes sparked but then died down a second later.

“Rain check?”

I nodded. But my voice held the impatience I felt.

“Sure. I'll just put it next to the rest of the umbrellas you keep handing me.”

He sighed.

“Lois –“

I interrupted him.

“I mean, is it just me or is this relationship all interruptus and no coitus? You're always running off just when things start getting interesting,”

I walked over to him and lowered my voice as I brushed a hand up his arm.

“and I like being interested -- a lot.”

He looked like I was physically hurting him and I smiled to myself.

“Yeah. I know. You're right. It's, uh... it's not fair to you. I think we should take a break.”

I moved away from him like he slapped me but held my voice strong.

“You mean like, what... see other people?”

He looked at me startled and raised a brow.

“Uh, well, okay. Yeah, I mean, if that's what you want. I was actually thinking more along the lines of taking a vacation... together.”

My heart went back to normal and I smiled.

“Really?”

He grinned and I walked back over to him.

“Yeah, really.”

He put his arms around me.
“No rushing out in the middle of the good stuff?”

He shook his head and held on tighter. God he was wonderful. Hot to just the way I like ‘em.

“No. None. It'll be you, me, and... Monte Carlo?”

Wow…Monte Carlo…nice. Perfect place for Ollie and I to…

“Hmm.”

He lifted up his phone and motioned to it.

“There's just a few things that I do need to take care of before we go, and I think once we get –“

I cut him off by grabbing him and pressing my lips to his in a passionate kiss. When I backed off his eyes were still closed and he groaned.

“God, you're good at that.”

I laughed.

“I’m gonna get going….start packing.”

“Okay.”

I kissed him once more before I floated out of the apartment yelling over my shoulder.

“Bye.”

(Lex POV)

I was going through some papers on my desk when my father waltzed into my study. Wonderful

He rushed over to me and looked around. What is that fool looking for?

“I need to talk to you. You alone?”

I stopped rummaging and leaned back in my chair with my hands clasped together.

“Just me and my shadow, dad. Lana left to meet Chloe for lunch and discuss wedding plans.”

He gave me a dirty look and his voice was reprimanding. I despised when he took that tone of voice with me. Like I was still a child who was under his thumb and didn’t know any better.

“That's good too bad she's not out of the country considering what's happening.”

I tempered my voice but couldn’t help feeling agitated with him.

“Look, if this is about Dr. Casselli –“

He cut me off and his voice held irritation when he spoke to me.

“Casselli? Please Lex…He's the least of our worries. Another Luthorcorp Facility has been hit. That's six. Each one of them has some connection with 33.1.”

Ah that’s what he was going on about. 33.1. See what he doesn’t realize is that 33.1 is only a distraction for what I’m really working on. Or what one would call a building block to the final stage of my “project.” The information that was being stolen was only data of the beings in the facility not on the reason they are. I leaned forward and then got up. I grabbed a glass and poured myself some scotch.

“The only thing housed in those facilities was peripheral research.”

He waved me away and looked at me with disbelieving eyes.

“Oh, please Lex.”

It was the truth…to an extent. I would never go 50/50 on a project with my father and disclose all my secrets…He of all people should know that. The lessons came from him.

“All the vital data is still secure in the mainframe.”

He chuckled condescendingly at me.

“And how long do you think before that location is compromised? If it ever became public that Luthorcorp is experimenting on people with abilities –“

I cut him off and grabbed a paper from my desk.

“It won't.”

I handed him the paper.

“What's this?”

I smiled at him. That’s right dad. I knew who was breaking in and out of these facilities and I was going to catch him. Always one step ahead.

“A single frame pulled off a security camera from one of the break-ins. Whoever is responsible has the ability to move faster than a speeding bullet. Such a unique individual would make an interesting test subject to add to 33.1, don't you think?”

I knew the exact minute my father faltered because I could read his expression clearly. He knew who it was…and he was nervous..for a brief second I saw his indifferent mask shatter and I knew my assumptions had been correct on who was in that picture.

By the time he spoke his voice was even and his face showed nothing of the slip he made a few seconds before.

“What do you plan to do?”

My lips curved back and I tilted my head to the side.

“Protect our investment. Come on. I'll walk you out.”

And walk him out I did all the way to the front door and watched him leave in his limo. I grinned
You can only cover for him for so long dad…when I’m done with them though…the only thing that will be left to protect is yourself.

(Chloe POV)

I sat at an outdoor table at the restaurant waiting for Lana. I sipped my water and heard her voice. She plopped down across from me.

“I’m sorry I'm late Chloe. Today’s been crazy. Anyway tell me all about how your doctor’s appointment went. I called last week but you guys must have been busy.”

I laughed. Lana was my gossip buddy. I love Lois to pieces but you’d never find her doing any kind of girly gossiping unless it involved a story. Lana was the opposite. We’ve had many girly conversations over the years. And this was no different to her. It made me smile to know that some things would never change.

“Yea I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to call you back it was there was a lot going on last week.”

She nodded and waved me off.

“Don’t even worry about it.”

The waiter came over and Lana ordered herself something to drink. While she was talking to the waiter her hand lifted and I saw something glint on her finger. Holy crap! She said yes. Ok if I was honest with myself I knew she would but thinking it and seeing it…two very different things. I took a sip of water and spoke.

“Umm it looks like we both have a bit of news to share.”

I pointedly glanced down at her hand and she actually blushed.

“Yea…about that…I’m sorry I didn’t call you right away when it happened. I mean we were together that night but with Linda Lake and everything...plus I know how you feel about Lex and I was looking for a good way to tell you.”

I nodded and sipped more water. So they’ve been engaged for a little over two weeks now…I’m surprised it hasn’t hit the front page yet. I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach and I was kind of hoping it was indigestion from the bagel with cream cheese and olives I had earlier. I gave Lana a weak smile. I was going to try and be supportive because again I still didn’t have any hard evidence against Lex and now that Lana is pregnant with his child and engaged to him she would probably write me off in a minute if I tried to destroy the family that’s she’s always wanted.

“If you’re happy Lana…then I’m happy for you. I hope Lex is good to you.”

Her smile lessened at the comment but she obviously didn’t want to fight because she changed the subject and gave me a warm smile.

“So Chloe…Will there be a little girl Kent running around the farm chasing butterflies or a boy Kent bucking hale bays with his dad?”

I stopped what I was doing. That was the first time I had ever heard any call the baby a Kent before. I mean obviously they still think the baby’s Clarks but I just didn’t realize what that meant. I shook the thoughts away and grinned at Lana.

“We’re having a…”

I paused for dramatic effect and she leaned closer to me with anticipation. My grin grew wider.

“…baby boy.”

Lana’s eyes went wide and she moved a seat over and hugged me.

“Oh my god Chloe that’s amazing! Congratulations! I can’t wait to find out what I’m having.”

She smiled and put her hand on my stomach.

“Hey there baby boy Kent…I’m your aunt Lana.”

I spoke softly but firm.

“Jonathan.”

She looked up confused.

“What?”

“Jonathan…the baby’s name is going to be Jonathan Michael.”

Lana gave me a sad smile.

“Have you told Clark?”

I shook my head.

“No. I want it to be a surprise. We haven’t talked about names yet.”

She nodded and continued rubbing my stomach.

She was so engrossed in talking to the small bulge of my stomach that she didn’t notice the bitter smile I gave her.

Lana is a great person. She has a heart of gold…really. But everyone has a dark side…a side that they’re not so proud of…a side that hurts the people they care about for selfish or dangerous reasons. This side was different with each person. In Clark it was Kal…in me it might end up being the Meteor infected side of my DNA…in Lex it was the part of him that hungered for power, and in Lana it was a rage that sat dormant…a side of her that I saw coming out more and more now that she was with Lex. I never thought of Lana as naïve…but I never saw her as devious either.

But lately things have been slipping from her and ever since the Linda Lake incident she seems to be more determined then ever to find out Clarks secret. She’s been helping Lex more and more with his “projects”…defending his actions with a vengeance, and I was truly afraid that one day in the near future Lana was going to embrace Lex’s nature and my son and I would become her next experiment.

I still have hope that maybe Clark and I can talk some sense into her…because now I see what he was talking about. If we let her marry Lex it really will be the end and I loved Lana too much to lose her.
I looked at Lana and really prayed that Jonathan got to see this side of her…because my son deserved his aunt Lana.

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  05 Dec 2007 05:22
Here's Chapter 7 - Part B

Quote:
Chapter 7 Part B

(Clark POV)

I walked into Lionel’s office and he was putting his jacket on. He looked up and gave me a small smile. His voice was hesitant.

“Clark. I was, uh, just thinking about you. I’m heading out to lunch would you like to come?”

I shook my head no and walked closer to him. 

“You've got a funny way of showing it. I've left you half a dozen messages.”

He sighed and his forehead creased as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. Something was wrong…I wasn’t sure if I should ask if he was ok or not…I mean it’s Lionel… but he did make sure Chloe was well taken care of and he has been helping my mom out…and even though I didn’t want to admit it he’s been helping me to. He looked back at me and his voice was stressed.

“I'm sorry. I've been preoccupied.”

I spoke in a tone that I meant to come out accusingly and yet it didn’t. It came out more inquisitive then offensive.

“Helping that doctor from Belle Reeve get out of jail?”

He chuckled and then shook his head.

“Clark, my involvement with Belle Reeve is past history. But it appears that you still have a very active interest in breaking into Luthorcorp.”

I raised my eyebrow in confusion as he walked over to his desk grabbed a piece of paper and handed it to me. I looked closely at it and my eyes expanded a bit.

“Where was this taken?”

His voice was reprimanding and I almost rolled my eyes.

“Mexico -- the Luthorcorp processing plant. If you're going to continue playing games like this, you should be more careful.”

I looked startled. I looked at the time stamped on the surveillance photo and it was from this morning.

“This isn't me. It says here this was taken this morning. I was with Chloe this morning.”

He looked thoughtful.

“No? Hmm…I wonder who it could be then. Hopefully there aren’t anymore Kryptonian visitors in town…that would be unpleasant. Listen Clark…”

I looked up at him and he continued.

“In the next few weeks I’m going to be passing along some information that you and Miss Sullivan have been after for quite some time…Until then if you could possibly lay low on illegally obtaining such information it would make my job a lot easier. ”

I gave him a curious look and then it dawned on me…He new about 33.1. My eyes grew wider.

“You know about 33.1 don’t you…and you didn’t say anything to me about it?”

I was angry and Lionel tried to calm me down.

“Clark…what would you have done? Lex believes I am working on this project with him. Once I have the documents in my hands I will find a way to get them to you. If I was really trying to betray you what would I gain from telling you this?”

He was right and this might make things easier for me and it also meant Chloe would no longer have to look into this, which was a huge weight off my shoulders. I hated putting her in unnecessary danger.

In regards to the photo I knew exactly who it was. It was Bart. It made perfect sense. When he came to the Barn this morning he had said he’d been in Mexico. Hell he took me back there to get a Burrito. I knew he was up to no good…but Lex again…I didn’t think so. This was a little up scale for Bart…not just petty thievery. I was gonna have to look into this.
Lionel’s voice broke my thought processes.

“I’m sorry…what’d you say?”

He laughed and walked over to me. He patted my shoulder.

“I asked you how Miss Sullivan was doing. She’s feeling better then the last time I saw her I hope?”

I smiled and followed him out of his office. We got into the elevator and headed down.

“Yea she’s doing good. She’s been getting the strangest cravings though. The other night she had me run to Italy for authentic Italian food.”

I shook my head and Lionel’s chuckle was good-natured. The elevator dinged and we got out.

“It will get worse mark my words. Women who are carrying the next generation inside of them have a free pass to procure anything and everything they want from you...”

He shook his head and his smile seemed like he was remembering a memory from his past.

“And you’ll give into them every time willingly because of what they represent to you.”

I looked at Lionel and for the first time I saw what my mother must have been seeing all along. I might not like him all that much and I hated him hanging all over my mother. I most certainly did not in any way consider him a father figure or replacement for my father because Jonathan Kent was out of this man’s league…my father was…an extraordinary man. But Lionel’s friendship, and I use the term loosely, has been a great help to me and my family. For once I think I can actually say I’m glad he knows my secret. I cleared my throat and glanced at Lionel.

“If the offer still stands I’d like to um…come grab…lunch with you.”

He looked surprised but nodded his head.

“Absolutely Clark…no man likes to dine alone.”

We left the building and I awkwardly got into the car with Lionel. A few seconds later we took off for lunch and the last thought on my mind was wait till I tell Chloe about this…she’s gonna flip.

(Chloe POV)

I opened the door and walked into the kitchen. When I looked up the kitchen was full of empty dishes and Mrs. Kent was standing in the middle of the kitchen staring at Bart. I heard him speak his voice muffled with food.

“God, Mrs. K, thank you so much. This was so good.”

She just shook her head.

“Where do you put it all? You eat more than Clark, and he's twice your size.”

I saw him shrug.

“Yeah, well, you know, I burn a lot of calories.”

“What in the world happened here?”

Mrs. Kent looked over at me startled. Bart turned around and grinned.

“Chloe-licious…what are you doing here gorgeous? Looking for that beefcake of a boyfriend?”

He waggled his eyebrows at me and I laughed. Mrs. Kent shook her head.

“Behave yourself Bart.”

He grinned and then looked me over and I saw his facial expression change. He was looking at my stomach, apparently he didn’t get a god view of it this morning. I wasn’t anywhere near huge but my stomach was no longer flat either. It looked like a little potbelly but a tad larger and a smidge rounder. He glanced back up at me.

“Are you…”

I looked at him and waited for him to finish his sentence. When he didn’t I did it for him.

“Pregnant?”

He nodded.

“Yes. Does that mean your going to stop hitting on me?”

I said it playfully and he grinned slyly.

“Not a chance. While I’m in town stretch is gonna have some competition.”

I laughed. Wait till Clark hears that…he’s just gonna love it.

Mrs. Kent sighed and then smiled.

“Are you hungry Chloe?”

“Nope. I just got back from lunch with Lana. We ate half the menu it was literally disgusting.”

She laughed but I was serious. I had to pee…again. This was like the fifth time in the last two hours. I groaned and walked out of the kitchen.

(Clark POV)

I walked into the house from the front where Lionel dropped me off and I could here my mom talking to someone.

“Well, there's plenty more in the fridge. I have to run to a meeting. Would you mind cleaning up?”

It was Bart. I glanced over and saw him super speed around the kitchen and clean everything up.

My mom turned around and was astonished. Bart grinned at her while he was still cleaning out a glass.

“Yeah, anything for you, Mrs. K.”

I saw her smile warmly at him.

“It's nice to have you here, Bart. I hope you stay longer this time.”

He smiled and she left. I walked into the kitchen and Bart looked up.

“Hey, what's up, man? You just missed a killer spread.”

He was acting like he hadn’t lied to my face this morning. I shook me head.

“You can cut the act. I know about Luthorcorp and the break-ins by somebody who's as fast as me.”

He looked away from me and his smile was gone.

“Yeah. Faster, actually.”

I frowned at him.

“You know what's funny? I actually believed your story about how I changed your life.”

He looked back at me and the look on his face was almost pleading.

“Look, it's not a story, Clark, okay? Really, I'm not the same guy.”

I was having a hard time believing him. I had proof that showed me otherwise.

“You stole from Lex before. You're stealing from him again. What's the difference?”

He was starting to get frustrated and he picked up his hands and shook them.

“It's just -- ugh! -- It's complicated.”

I glared at him.

“I'm a smart guy. Explain it to me.”

He shook his head and looked down. His voice was soft.

“I can't.”

I spoke louder because he was making me mad. Why wouldn’t he just tell me what was going on?

“Why not? I thought we were amigos.”

He looked up hurt that I was insinuating we weren’t friends.

“We are.”

I stood my ground. I needed to know what was going on.

“Then tell me why you're stealing from Luthorcorp.”

He hesitated and then shut his mouth for a couple more minutes before he broke the silence.

“I just... I can't.”

I glanced over at his backpack and then back at him. My arms were crossed over my chest and I uncrossed them. I spoke with a stern look on my face.

“I'll find out for myself, then.”

I walked over to his backpack and right before I grabbed it Bart speed around me and appeared in front of me wearing it. He looked upset and irritated at the same time.

“Look, I'm sorry I can't tell you all my secrets, Clark. Okay? I thought a guy like you would understand.”

He took off out the front door leaving me feeling like a jerk. He was right…I was being a hypocrite. I kept secrets from almost everyone I know and yet I expected everyone I came in contact with to be honest to me…


(Chloe POV)

I came out of the bathroom at the end of an argument. I heard yelling so I rushed and when I finally made it out Clark was standing by the kitchen table alone looking out the front door.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

He turned to me and gave a small smile, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Your home…how’s your day goin' so far?”

I nodded and walked over to him. He leaned down and kissed me.

“Looks like it’s goin’ better then yours.”

I motioned to the open front door.

“What happened?”

He shrugged and sat on one of the chairs.

“Bart and I got into a fight.”

I walked over to him and leaned my head on his shoulder.

“I kind of got that.”

He pulled me to him so I was standing between his legs. I could feel his grin against my hair.

“By the way. Lionel say’s hello and he hopes your feeling better.”

I moved back so I was facing him but not out of his arms.

“When did you talk to Lionel?”

“He Dropped me off here. I went to his office earlier to ask why he hasn’t been returning my phones calls and he invited me to lunch. Oh and apparently he has been working with Lex on 33.1 but he said as soon as he gets copies of the documents he’ll send them over to us. Which means no more snooping around sources to find out what’s going on with 33.1”

I was staring at him utterly speechless. Did he just say he had lunch with Lionel?

“I’m sorry back up there for a minute. You had lunch with Lionel?”

He chuckled and playfully pinched me.

“Is that all you heard?”

“No…but that’s the strangest part…and I seem to be attracted to strange sooo.”

He nodded and smiled.

“Mmm”

He started kissing me and I smiled. He stopped after a couple of minutes and got serious.

“I need a favor.”

I smiled.

“Name it.”

He sighed.

“The guy who saved you at the planet -- he didn't exactly get away. It's Bart.”

Oh my god what? I can’t believe he didn’t tell me…oh yes I can and I know why he didn’t to. He was protecting Bart.

“What? Wait a minute. Bart can super speed, too?”

He nodded.

“He's actually a lot faster than I am. That's the truth. I'm sorry I didn't tell you.”

I shook my head and waved him off.

“It's fine. You were protecting him. It's okay. I mean, if anyone gets it, it's me. But why are you outing him now?”

Clark got up and started pacing.

“I think he's headed for trouble, and I need to find him. When I went to Lionel’s office earlier he had a photograph of someone breaking into a Luthorcorp plant. Someone with super speed and it wasn’t me. You think you Can GPS his cell phone for me?”

I grinned. That’s my man coming to me for some quality hacking.

“Yeah, I can try. Do you have his number? Oh can you grab my laptop from upstairs?”

He was gone and back in seconds and my laptop was open on the counter. I grinned and walked over to it.

“Best boyfriend ever…”

He smiled and leaned over my shoulder.

“I think Lex is on to him. If he tries to break into another facility...”

I shook my head.

“No good. His phone must be off.”

He sighed.

“What about call history? Can you pull up a record?”

I grinned. Finally something fun to do.

“Legally? Absolutely not.”

I typed the number in and pulled up the record. There was a Metropolis number that kept repeating. Hmm whose Bart been talking to?

“There's over a dozen calls to that number in the last 24 hours.”

“Let's see who's on the other end.”

I looked up the number we found and it belonged to a business. Clark sounded confused when he spoke.

“Artemis Global Consortium? Never heard of them.”

“It's as subsidiary of J.L. International, which is a satellite company currently orbiting... Queen Industries?”

I looked up at Clark. He shook his head and his face-hardened.

“It's Oliver. He's using Bart to attack Luthorcorp.”

He moved around me and I stood up.

“Where are we going?”

He stopped and turned to me with a look of disbelief on his face.

“Are you kidding me Chloe? You’re not going anywhere. You were almost shot the other day! If anything happened to you or the baby I don’t know what I’d do. Please stop trying to put yourself in the middle of danger…I’ll be back soon.”

I glared at Clark.

“I’m not useless.”

He sighed.

“I never said you were…but your not invincible. Chloe you need to think of the baby…I know you don’t want anything to happen to him.”

I nodded.

“I know I know…go and when you find something call me and let me know ok?”

He smiled, leaned down and kissed me.

“I promise.”

And he was gone.

(Lex POV)

I was sitting in the control room and I saw him speed in. I sat up in my chair. It wasn’t Clark…remarkable. I looked closer at the monitors. I knew this boy though. I’ve seen him before.
I sent out the order for the guards to stand down. Let this clown try to infiltrate my system. He’ll see what happens when he crosses me. He put the device in the computer and an electric shock knocked him unconscious. I grinned as I got up and walked out there. A group of armed guards were already they’re waiting when I got there. I smirked down on his unconscious body.

“Not so fast now, are you?”

I looked up at the guards.

“Take him away.”

As soon as they were gone I took out my cell phone and placed a call to Dr. Rhinehouse. It rang three times before he picked up. His voice was distracted and it came low over the receiver.

“Dr. Rhinehouse speaking.”

“Hello doctor, I trust your doing well today.”

His voice changed immediately and I could here shuffling on the other end of the line. The next time he spoke it sounded nervous. Good to know I can still instill fear into people…I was beginning to question my ability to do so.

“Mr. Luthor…hello…is there...is there something I can help you with today?”

Why else would I be calling him? I’m going to have to get some more intelligent people working for me because this is ridiculous.

“Yes. I’d like you to fax over all the paperwork on patient X to my private number.”

I paused when I heard him take a deep breath.

“I’d like to know how the fetus is progressing and what the status of its...unnatural abilities are.”

“Very well Mr. Luthor…Sir I’ve been placing the supplement into her prenatal vitamins.”

I nodded to myself and smirked. Everything is going according to plan then and we should be ready for the first trial run soon.

“When will the subject be ready for the first test trial?”

“In about two weeks sir.”

“Good. If there are any problems get in touch with me immediately.”

And I ended the call. It was getting exceedingly to easy to manipulate people. This doctor thinks he’s in line for some kind of Nobel Prize for helping discover what we are working on. What he doesn’t know is that 24 hours after it’s all finished…he’ll be dead. I glanced down at my watch. Lana should be home by now. She’s been inquiring about my experiments on Meteor Freaks quite a bit lately and I’m assuming it has something to do with Chloe and Clark. That’s all right though. I’ve decided to come clean with Lana about it tonight. Once she knows what going on or rather what she thinks is going on I’m almost positive she’ll want to help me. I was walking out of the facility and to my car when my cell phone rang.

“Hello.”

Her voice was soft and firm like a symphony. I smiled. Lana always did that to me. I truly do consider her my equal and with my help she can blossom into the beautifully powerful woman I know she can be. I honestly did love Lana as much as you can love another person.

“Hey you. Where did you run off to? I thought you said you’d be working from home today.”

I opened the car door and got in.

“I had to step out for a meeting really quick but I’m on my way back now.”

She must have heard the car starting because I could hear the grin in her voice when she spoke.

“Lex…are you just getting in the car now?”

I shook my head as I took off and smiled.

“I am.”

“Can you stop on your way home and pick a few thing’s up for me?”

“We don’t have what you need in the mansion?”

I really did not want to stop off. I just wanted to go home, but…if Lana needed something I’d go. After all she was carrying the next generation of Luthors. It’s good to know all the fertility supplement’s I have been slipping her went to good use.

“No...”

“Well…what do you need?”

I could her smile was back as she spoke.

“Raspberry Ice cream…and sour pickles.”

What? Does she want the pickles on something?

“Do you want the pickles on something? Like a sandwich? I can pick one up from the Talon I know you love the sandwiches there.”

“No I want a plain jar of pickles and a small tub of ice cream.”

I drove off the side road and onto the main road to head to the supermarket.

“I don’t get it…what’s the ice cream for then?”

She laughed and I looked out the window searching for the store confused.

“The ice cream is to dunk the pickles in Lex…that’s what it’s for.”

I made a face. That is absolutely disgusting. I have never heard anything as vile as that in my life. She’s going to feed that to my child? Oh dear…I really should have had my assistant read up on pregnancy…this is going to be a long few months. I took a deep breath and swallowed.

“Well…ok then…I’ll be home soon.”

She laughed and said bye then hung up. I shivered. Ice cream and pickles….ugh

(Lana POV)

I was in the study when Lex walked in with a plastic bag holding it as far away from him as possible. I grinned. He was so funny. When I was talking to him on the phone before I could almost here the disgust in his voice and it made me laugh. I walked over and kissed him. I grabbed the bag gently.

“Thank you.”

He nodded.

“Of course…umm your not going to eat that now are you?”

I chuckled.

“I fully intended to yes.”

I saw him wince and he loosed his tie and sat down. I got a spoon and followed him over.

“Long day?”

“Yes. I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”

He sounded serious so I put the ice cream down and gave him my undivided attention.

“What is it?”

He moved to the edge of his seat and took my hands.

“The only thing that you have ever asked from me in regards to our relationship Lana has been to be truthful. Now 95% of the time I am an open book with you, you know that.”

I nodded.

“But lately you have been asking me a question and I have been avoiding the answer and diverting your attention with other things because I didn’t feel you were ready for the truth.”

I frowned at him. What has Lex been lying to me about?

“Lex you know you can tell me anything.”

He nodded again.

“I know. That’s why I decided that you’re ready to hear everything. Lana we are getting married and you are the only other person I trust aside form myself. I don’t want any secrets between us.”

He took a deep breath and I squeezed his hand.

“Lana 33.1 does exist…I have been moving patients from Belle Reeve to a safe location. I have been having them partake in different tests to see how they received their abilities from the Meteor rocks and if there is a way to harness there power and control it. I have also been extracting there DNA to use in creating a serum that would rid them of the abilities the Meteor rocks have given them. Some patients don’t want to be there…but these are dangerous people and I am keeping them their for the safety of everyone involved until I have figured out how to cure them.”

I was sitting there shocked. He looked into my eyes and let out a breath.

“That’s everything…the whole truth. You now know all my secrets Lana…what you do with this information is up to you?”

I was confused. My head was spinning. 33.1 did exist…Chloe was right but if what Lex was saying is true he’s trying to help these people. So maybe he’s holding them against there will. But it’s for there own good and the good of all of us who have been attacked by many of them over the years.

“What do you mean?”

I looked at me intensely.

“This…project. If people found out about it…it could cause Luthorcorp a lot of trouble. Experimenting on people isn’t exactly looked highly upon Lana. People want results but they don’t want anyone thinking there inhuman enough to subject people to testing without the persons consent. I assure you we don’t treat these people bad. Anytime you want to see what’s going on I’ll show you live video feeds. I refuse to take you there in person while you’re pregnant though…it’s too much of a risk to you and the baby. But after the baby is born if you’d like to come and see the project I’ll bring you myself. As I said before I’m an open book and I could use your help in the aspects that aren’t hands on with the Meteor infected people.”

I nodded. This is it…Lex is finally letting me se the last part of him that he’s been hiding away. I truly believe part of the reason he was hiding it was because he felt I would look at him differently. But as I look at him now all I see is a man who is trying to protect his family and friends from people who have the ability to harm other without even blinking an eye. I don’t know how anyone could call Lex a bad man…his methods weren’t always on the up and up but sometimes you needed to play hard ball to get necessary things done and if that’s what he was doing…then I wanted to be a part of it.

I tightened my grip around his hand and moved next to him on the couch. He looked at me and I leaned over and kissed him deeply. When I pulled away his eyes looked vulnerable and I smiled.

“I’m not mad Lex. I understand why your doing this…over the years these people have hurt my friends and I countless times…I don’t want our child or Chloe’s to ever have to go through that. So I get it…and I want to help you.”

I put my hands on either side of his face.

“You’re a good man Lex Luthor…and I’ll always be on your side.”

His eyes seemed to get misty and he grabbed my face and kissed me.

There were more and more of the infected people every time I turned around and if they wanted a fight…Lex and I were going o give it to them.

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  05 Dec 2007 05:37
The next part contains the author's version of Justice

Quote:


Chapter 7 Part C

(Clark POV)

I stormed into Oliver’s apartment and found him walking over to his desk with a bunch of papers in his hand. I still can’t believe he was using Bart to get to Lex. What was he thinking? My voice was hard.

“Oliver.”

He looked up at me shaking his head.

“Look, Clark, whatever's got your tighty whities in a bunch, now is not the time.”

I moved over to him. I was going to get to the bottom of this.

“Where's Bart? I saw his phone records. I know he's working for you.”

Oliver looked at me and raised a brow then continued looking through the papers he held.

“Not for me. Working with me. There's a difference.”

His voice was tempered as if he were speaking to a child.

I came closer and shook my head.

“It's not gonna matter when he ends up in jail or worse.”

Oliver sneered at me and was throwing things around his desk.

“Yeah, you don't know what you're talking about.”

I stood my ground. I knew he hated Lex but I thought I knew Oliver and he didn’t seem like the type to put someone else in danger just to bring Lex down.

“I know how much you hate Lex. Is that why you recruited Bart -- to help with your little vendetta?”

He finally stopped shuffling through papers and slammed his hands on his desk. He looked me dead in my eyes and spoke with frustration.

“No. To stop 33.1.”

My eyebrows furrowed as I looked at him. I was so confused. How did he know about 33.1? And why didn’t he say anything to me? My voice came out lower and a bit hurt.

“You know about 33.1? Why didn't you tell me what you were up to?”

Oliver sighed and sat down. He was still irritated but it was less now.

“Clark, do you check in with me every time you run off to save the world? Oh, that's right. For a second there, I forgot. You like to wait for trouble to show up on your doorstep.”

Now I got mad. He didn’t know anything. I try to do the best I could and I’m sick of everyone criticizing what I do do.

“That's not true.”

He got up and walked toward me his voice rising with each step.

“Then why haven't you done anything to stop 33.1?”

He turned to face the window as he spoke. Because I’ve been wondering around the world trying to get the phantoms I let out back into the phantom zone.

“I was busy with another problem.”

He whipped back around so I could see his face.

“What could be more urgent than Lex Luthor developing an army of super freaks, Clark? That's what he's doing. He's starting a war.”

I was aware of that and Chloe and I have been doing our best digging into every aspect of 33.1 that we could find. Chloe has mountains of research about 33.1. Maybe we could all pull together for Bart’s sake and get him out of this mess.

“What have you found out?”

He shook his head and sauntered back over to his desk. He was tense and his voice was clipped.

“Not enough. Last night Bart infiltrated a place that was supposed to house the mainframe for 33.1. That's the last time I heard from him. So I re-conned the target this morning. The place had been stripped clean. Everything's gone. The whole thing was a setup.”

This is exactly what I was afraid of. I’ll never forgive myself if something happens to Bart…we didn’t part on good terms and I wanted a chance to apologize to him.

“Lex has Bart. We have to find him.”

Oliver nodded and let a small smile slip.

“My team's already on it.”

Huh? I raised a brow and looked at him skeptically.

“Your team?”

Oliver motioned behind him and I turned around and was stunned at what I saw. Victor Stone and Arthur Curry were walking in from another room.

“Not everybody flies solo, Kent.”

They grinned at me and Oliver smiled. I gave a slight smile. I guess the boys are back in town…

(Lex POV)

I was on my way to the Ridge Facilities on the outskirts of Metropolis. They called and said the subject would be waking up shortly. When I got there they directed me to where he was being held. I walked into a huge room with a large glass chamber that was just built in the middle of the room. The boy was inside of it moving on the floor. Perfect timing. I had all the lights turned on as and he stood up glaring in my direction. I gave him a sardonic smile.

“Morning, sunshine. I know you. You've stolen from me before.”

His glare got harder and he crossed his arms over his chest.

“I want a lawyer.”

I spoke sarcastically to him.

“And I want a ponytail. Disappointment abounds. Who do you work for?”

This time he smiled at me and shrugged.

“What you see is what you get, there, goldilocks.”

I sneered at him. There was no way he was behind this. He’s going after information not possessions and regular thieves don’t do that.

“You're a low-level thief. Swiping corporate data isn't your style. Now, tell me who you're working for, and this won't have to get unpleasant.”

He rolled is eyes but then came closer and touched the glass of the chamber.

“All right. All right, I work for a guy called Mr. Kiss-my-butt. Would you like me to introduce you?”

He smirked and the little bit of humor I had left was gone. I was considering forgetting trying to get information from him and just working on the torturing part. Fine kid you want to do it the hard way…be my guest. I pulled out the remote that controlled the floor to his cell.

“The floor of your cell has been outfitted with pressure plates designed to track movement. Stop in one place for even a millisecond after I activate them, and you fry. Last chance…”

But he said nothing. Well let’s see if his loyalty stays firmly in place after a few hours of none stop running.

“Well, maybe you'll feel more talkative when you get tired of running.”

I shrugged and walked away while pushing the button on the remote that activated the chamber. I could tell when he felt the first shock because I heard him scream out…

“Ah!”

And I smiled….

(Clark POV)

I was standing around Oliver’s apartment and I still couldn’t believe they were all here and that Oliver was giving them orders…well not order’s but he kind of seemed to be the leader or there little group. I watched them interact. Oliver spoke to A.C. with a stern tone.

“A.C., check the Luthorcorp manifests.”

He nodded and moved toward them.

“Gotcha.”

I decided it was time to interrupt their well-oiled machine and try to figure some things out.

“How long have you guys been working together?”

Victor looked up at me from his seat.

“I joined up about six months ago. Ollie and Bart had already been doing their thing.”

I was confused. I thought that Victor had left with Katherine and they were going to work on things.

“What about your girlfriend -- Katherine?”

A.C. took his hand a waved it in front of his neck in the universal symbol for cut it out or don’t say that. Then he shook his head and said with a smirk on his face.

“Dude, don't even go there.”

Victor’s face was clouded by hurt for a second before he pushed it away.

“She gave it her best shot. But with all this hardware in me...”

I understood. I mean with all the time’s Lana and I had tried to work thing’s out we just never could. And I’m kind of glad about that because now I have Chloe and I couldn’t be happier. I stilled loved Lana…but I could feel the intensity fading. Maybe it wasn’t about all the hardware in Victor; maybe he just needed to find his Chloe. I gave him an understanding smile.

“I'm sorry, Victor.”

He nodded and brushed it off. He gave me a small grin when he told me how he became part of the team.

“Ollie found me, I was living on the streets. He gave me a warm meal, roof over my head... and a reason to go on living.”

Oliver took that moment to walk into the room and he fanned ignorance at what Victor had just said. His expression was mock confusion.

“Did he just say something nice about me?”

Then A.C. joined in teasing Victor.

“Maybe he's starting to rust.”

They laughed and Victor shook his head. They all had such easygoing friendships. I was envious of that. I glanced over at A.C. and broke the laughter up by speaking.

“A.C., how'd you fall into all this?”

He grinned and leaned against Oliver’s desk.

“I got into a little trouble sinking a whaler off the coast of Japan.”

Victor chuckled and teased him.

“A little trouble? That's what you're gonna go with? Ollie had to save your scaly butt from getting filleted.”

He frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. When he spoke it came out grumbled.

“I would have gotten out of it.”

Oliver joined in the conversation now walking over to us.

“Oh really? Before or after they packed you into a thousand little tin cans?”

Victor’s smirk became larger and he tried to keep the serious edge to his voice but it wasn’t working so well.

“Well, at least he would have been dolphin-safe.”

A.C. walked by me and shook his head good-naturedly.

“Fish jokes. That's all I ever get are fish jokes.”

He perked up and faced me.

“So how's Lois doing, man? Is she all right?”

I looked up at Oliver and laughed to myself. Ah, so he hasn’t told A.C. that he’s dating Lois…nice that should be funny when it finally comes out.

“Um, I think you'd have to ask your boss.”

A.C. looked confused and Oliver came down the steps quickly. He avoided the question artfully and dove right back into why everyone was gathered here.

“Now is not the time. We need to focus on locating Bart.”

Speaking of Bart I wonder how Oliver got him to go along with all this. From what I remember he never liked the follow rules.

“And how exactly did you get him involved in this? He's never been much of a team player.”

Oliver raised and eyebrow at me and gave me a small condescending smile.

“Looks like you two have something in common, huh? Actually, um, I was out on patrol in Star City one night, and I came across Bart. He was helping himself to a free meal. I could tell he was a good kid, you know? He just needed a little direction, so I offered him a job.”

He shrugged and I thought there might be more to the story that he wasn’t sharing but I didn’t want to push. I frowned at what he said though and spoke low.

“Look where that got him.”

Oliver’s body tensed and his eyes got cold. His voice was hard and determined when he spoke.

“I underestimated Lex. It won't happen again. I've compiled a list of all Luthorcorp holdings within a 100-mile radius. Bart could be held in any one of those facilities.”

Victor shook his head and sighed in frustration.

“That's a lot of real estate to cover.”

I smiled. Chloe…she’s great at stuff like this. She’d be able to help us figure out where Bart was. Plus she could help without putting her self at risk…wow two birds one stone…I’m getting good at this multitasking stuff.

“I think I know someone who can help us narrow it down.”

(Chloe POV)

The looked up from my laptop when I heard Clarks voice calling me. I smiled.

“Hey.”

He walked over to me leaned down and kissed me then put the palm of his hands on my desk.

“I need you to do something for me…”

I raised an inquisitive brow.

“Two favors in one day Clark? What’s the occasion?”

He paced back and forth in front of my desk.

“I just left Oliver’s…he knows about 33.1 and he’s been recruiting people to stop Lex.”

He stopped moving and faced me.

“Victor, A.C, and Bart have been working recon for Oliver to get information about 33.1 and stop it.”

He let out a deep breath and my eyes opened wide. This is huge!

“Victor Stone and Arthur Curry are working for him, too?”

He nodded and rushed his next sentence along.

“Yeah, Oliver's been busy. When they said we needed to narrow down the list of 33.1 facilities I immediately thought of you. No one knows there way around a computer better. Plus this is a way for you to help without putting you or the baby in danger. Is there anything in your Luthorcorp intel that can help us find out where Bart's being held?”

I sighed. I wasn’t really sure if I had anything for him…oh wait the info I got from Dr. Casselli’s internal documents!

“I don't know. Uh... wait. When I had my feelers out for Dr. Casselli, I managed to shake loose some internal documents. In the last few days, there's been a flurry of equipment transfers to a place called the Ridge Facilities on the outskirts of Metropolis.”

He looked confused.

“Doesn't Luthorcorp move equipment all the time?”

That’s just it…this wasn’t normal material that you’d transfer back and forth. It was…different.

“This isn't just a couple of forklifts, Clark. Half a ton of lead shielding, electrical pressure plates, more than $20 million worth of equipment to measure high-velocity particles.”

Clark looked kind of excited and nodded frantically.

“It's Bart. Take everything and bring it to Oliver.”

I looked at him startled. He couldn’t be serious. Oliver and Lois were dating and he was a very sweet guy but we’re just acquaintances. He doesn’t even know that I know he’s the green arrow. Why does Clark always do these things?

“Me? Clark –“

He cut me off and spoke quickly.

“I can get to the Ridge Facility faster myself. I can't let anything happen to Bart. Be careful.”

He leaned over kissed me and I felt the whoosh of air as he left to go find Bart.


About fifteen minutes later I loaded all my stuff in my car and headed to Oliver’s. I was in the elevator riding up when it stopped. I saw the red light on the camera go on and I figured Oliver was using it to see who it was. I looked at the camera and spoke to it.

“Mr. Queen, it's Chloe Sullivan. Clark sent me.”

The elevator started again and when the door opened I walked into the apartment. Oliver gave me a hesitant smile.

“Chloe I told you it’s Oliver not Mr. Queen”

He glanced behind me and looked confused.

“Where's Clark?”

I looked at him carefully and spoke slow.

“He went to rescue Bart.”

He looked startled. Oh that’s right I forgot Oliver doesn’t know I know about Clark. See all this secrecy is confusing and doesn’t do any of us any good.

“He told you about Bart?”

I shrugged. And put my bag down on his desk.

“We trust each other. Clark tells me everything -- well, almost everything.”

I paused and smirked at Oliver.

“I did have to figure out about your green-leather fetish on my lonesome.”

His mouth hung open as he pointed at me. He looked like he wanted to say something but couldn’t get it out. I smiled

“Don't worry. I didn't say anything to Lois. Although, you might want to consider –“

He cut me off when he finally got his voice back.

“Hey, let's just stick to the main plot, there, sidekick. So, what do you got?”

I raised an eyebrow and glared in his direction.

“First off I’m no sidekick secondly hopefully a solid lead on Bart. Where are Victor and A.C.?”

Oliver looked at me then hung his head with a look of disbelief on his face. Victor and A.C. walked into the room.

“Guess we're not that good at the whole "secret" part of this yet.”

They smirked at each other and I smiled.

“Yeah, but you're great at getting caught by the villain.”

I shook my head and they looked hurt at my comment. I walked over to the screen Oliver had up of all the possible 33.1 sites and saw the Ridge Facility. I glanced at Oliver.

“Anyway, I think Bart's being held at a place called the Ridge Facility”

A.C. walked over by me and smiled at me before he spoke.

“That's down by the docks.”

I nodded. And Oliver went through the places on the screen and when he came to it he clicked on it for a blueprint of the building.

“It's on our list of possible 33.1 targets.”

We all looked over the plans and I heard Oliver speaking as I gazed closer at the screen.

“All right, boys. You know the drill. Let's gear up and get out.”

My heart dropped to my stomach when I saw the room with lead shielding. Kryptonite…Clark was there alone and they were experimenting with Meteor rocks there. Oh god…I got Oliver’s attention when my voice broke as I spoke.

“Oh, no.”

Oliver looked at me and I could see the question in his eyes.

"What now?…Chloe?”

My voice was a whisper when I spoke and Oliver put a hand on the small of my back

“Lead shielding. This isn't just for Bart. I think the Ridge Facility's being used to refine meteor rock. Clark's in trouble…”

Oliver looked worriedly at Victor and A.C.

“It will be fine Chloe. We’re gonna suit up and get Clark and Bart back…don’t worry.”

They all left the room and a few minutes later they came out dressed in costumes. I was almost tempted to laugh but I didn’t want to insult them. They started to walk out and I stopped them.

“Be careful…and Oliver.”

He looked at me and I gave him a half smile.

“Bring Clark back to us.”

He nodded and they left.

(Clark POV)

Oliver got to me just in time. The kryptonite was starting to get to me. When we walked out he gave me a mic that connected me to Chloe and took off in a different direction. I went to go find Bart and when I finally got there I saw what Lex had done to him. I ran as fast as I could through the glass shattering it, grabbed Bart and ran through the other end. Once he could stand up we moved through the hallways and ran into Oliver. I looked over at Bart and spoke to him.

“Can you super speed?”

He nodded lightly and his voice was horse.

“Yeah, I just -- I need a minute to catch my breath”

Oliver shook his head and his voice was light and slightly amused when he spoke.

“You know what? You're gonna have to catch it later. Aquaman, Cyborg, rendezvous alpha confirmed.”

Heard Victor’s voice come crackling over the small speaker.

“We're on the move.”

Oliver then address Chloe.

“Watchtower, have all Luthor's people cleared the building?”

Her voice was soft and I could hear the awe in it. She was enjoying being our eyes and ears.

“The last heat signatures are moving away from the North.”

Just then I actually heard what she said. I scrunched up my eyebrows. I was confused but then again how that new?

“Wait a second. What are you doing?”

He looked at me like I was crazy. Bart stood next to him.

“What do you think I'm doing? You want more of your friends to end up in here?”

Bart shook his head. He still had a small amount of blood by his nose.

“Yeah, I'm voting no on that one.”

They had a point. I didn’t want anyone I cared about back here ever…Lex’s work needed to be destroyed at all costs. He held the earpiece to me and spoke to Chloe.

“Watchtower, are you sure everyone's out of the building?”

I could hear the smile in her voice as she spoke to me.

“100% positive.”

I looked at Oliver carefully just to make sure he was doing this for the right reasons. I smiled at them and spoke my voice firm.

“All right. Let's do it.”

As the five of us walked out of the building the structure exploded from several different places and went up in flames. We kept walked and I couldn’t help feeling like I was a part of something bigger, like this was the beginning of a larger purpose for me in the world…

(Chloe POV)

Last night had to be the most excitement I had in a long time…well except for almost getting shot the other day. It was early and I was in the barn with and the boys. I was on the phone with one of my co-workers getting the scoop on what they were printing about what happened at the Ridge Facility last night. I closed the phone shut and although I addressed everyone I looked at Clark.

“So the Daily Planet is running with the story that a gas explosion destroyed the "vacant" Luthorcorp building down by the docks.”

Clark shook his head as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Vacant? Looks like the Luthor cover-up machine is in full swing.”

I shrugged. We had to look at the bright side of things. I smiled at them.

“Well, at least we got Bart out before Lex ran him into an early grave.”

I sat down on a bale of hay a few feet from Clark.

“Come on. No worries. I had plenty of juice left.”

I heard Victor snort.

“Could have fooled me, the way you cleaned out Mama Kent's fridge.”

Bart chuckled.

He appeared next to me on the hale bale and playfully leered at me.

“That's 'cause I like to stay fueled up. Just in case I need to, uh, spring into action.”

I grinned and shook my head.

“I still have a boyfriend.”

He tilted his head to the side and smiled. His voice was dreamy.

“Yeah. Well, a man can dream, can't he?”

Clark chose to cut in then. He glared at Bart.

“No you can’t…not when the girlfriend is mine.”

Bart rolled his eyes and A.C. laughed and then spoke.

“Now you know why we call him Impulse.”

Victor looked back and forth between Clark and I.

“I didn’t know the two of your were together…You got a great girl there Kent…don’t let her get away.”

He winked at me and I laughed. Bart was still sitting next to me and he picked up my hand and kissed it. He was playfully flirting and Clark was glaring. I would be worried if I thought Clark was really mad but I know he’s not.

“Bart seriously…That is my pregnant girlfriend you are all over. Cut it out…or I’m going to hang you from the basketball hoop.”

I chuckled and Bart looked smugly at Clark.

“You’d have to catch me first stretch.”

The guys laughed including Clark and then he looked at them.

“So…Impulse, Cyborg, Aquaman, and Green Arrow. What do you guys call your team?”

Bart moved away from me and started walked to A.C and Victor. His voice was excited when he spoke.

“I don't know. I've been thinking that we need something cool. We need something like, uh -- like, uh –“

I heard Oliver’s voice cut him off and I turned to face him. He gave me a small smile but I knew better then that. I saw the red around his eyes and his posture. Lois called me early this morning incredibly inconsolable about Oliver. They had broken up. Normally I’d be mad at the guy who managed to break Lois’s heart but for some reason I just couldn’t stay mad at Oliver. Maybe it was because he looked as bad as she sounded…or maybe it was because he was leaving her to save the world…be a hero and I couldn’t fault him for that.

“I was thinking about something with the word "Justice" in it. After all, that's what Lex is gonna get a big dose of. Victor and A.C. were able to hack into the 33.1 mainframe before we blew the building.”

I finally got it. That’s why they all split up when they were inside. He was getting information on 33.1.

“That was your other mission.”

Victor nodded and looked proud of himself.

“Haven't met the computer yet I couldn't crack wide open.”

I grinned and Clark’s voice was interested. He spoke softly.

“What did you guys find out?”

A.C. moved by Clark and his voice was hard.

“That Lex isn't satisfied playing in his own backyard anymore.”


Oliver nodded and spoke.

“Luthorcorp is starting up divisions of 33.1 all across the globe. Wherever there's evidence of people with abilities, there'll be laboratories to do experiments on them.”

Clark stood up and squeezed my hand gently.

“We can't let that happen.”

Oliver smiled at Clark’s conviction.

“Don’t worry...We won't. Gentlemen, our first target is a large facility on the island of Corto Maltese. You guys know the drill. Wheels up in 30 minutes. Get your gear.”

Bart turned around to face Clark.

“You coming, amigo?”

A.C. smiled and nodded his head

“Yeah, you got to come with us, man.”

Victor grinned and spoke more softly.

“We could use the big guns.”

Oliver glanced at me and then back at Clark.

“They're right, you know -- you'd be a major asset to the team.”

I watched Clark closely and he hesitated. He looked at all of them and suddenly I felt bad. Clark has never had many people he could relate to and even less that actually knew who actually knew him and accepted him for him. I could tell that he wanted so bad to be a part of this. He wants to help the world and he also wants people he can call friends…people he can joke around with and not have to hide who he really is. And for the first time in a long time I felt like I was holding him back from achieving that. He started to say something to Oliver so I listened intently.

“I want to be a part of this, guys. I really do.”

Oliver nodded but rolled his eyes.

“But...”

He sighed.

“That problem I told you about -- the one that I caused -- I have to take care of that first…and it’s not just me anymore…I have Chloe and the baby.”

Oliver smiled and nodded. He held out his hand to Clark and they shook hands.

“This isn't the end of the story, Clark. This is just the beginning.”

Oliver looked at me as he was passing by and gave me a warm smile. He grasped my hand as he walked by and squeezed it before letting go and continuing on. He nodded at me.

“Chloe. Come on, boys. Let's go save the world.”

They walked out and left Clark and I standing there watching them from afar. I titled my head towards Clark.

“You have some pretty amazing friends, Clark Kent.”

He smiled down on me and spoke blatantly.

“Yeah. I do.”

He closed the distance between us and kissed me. I made a vow as I stood there kissing Clark. That no matter what...I would make sure he got the chance to work with Oliver. I would make sure he became the man I knew he could be...because I knew that’s what he wanted, what would make him happy, and I wanted to make Clark as happy as he made me.

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  05 Dec 2007 05:54
Next is the re-telling of Labyrinth - Part A

Quote:


Chapter 8 Part A

(Clark POV)

I was in the barn fixing the wheel on the tractor. I was waiting on Chloe. She went out a few hours ago with Lois to try and get her mind off of Oliver. I glanced at my watch. She should be getting home soon. I think she’s bringing Lois with her. We’re planning on telling her tonight that Jimmy is the baby’s father and not me. Chloe has been telling me for weeks that we needed to tell everyone. But I’ve been putting it off, making excuses because…well…would it be so bad if they thought he was mine? But since he’s Chloe and she thinks this is the right thing to do we are going to tell Lois tonight and everyone else tomorrow. I saw Shelby walk over by me just as I finished fixing the wheel. I spun it to make sure it worked.

“There we go. Well, Shelby, what do you say we call it a night, huh?”

I started rubbing his ears and knelt down next to him.

“Shelby? Your friend Chloe's gonna be here any minute. Any minute. Thanks for your help, buddy.”

I smiled and got up. I began walking away when Shelby started to growl…he ran up to the loft and looked at me. What was going on with that dog? I followed him up to the loft and looked around but no one was there.

“Shelby?”

I looked at him confused and he kept on barking and snarling. I bent down by him.

“Shelby, what is it? Shelby?”

He just wouldn’t stop growling and I x-rayed the loft but just to make sure I wasn’t missing anything. But nothing was there

“What's wrong, boy? You see something I don't?”

All of a sudden I felt something attack me from behind it threw me over the loft railing and I yelled out not from being afraid but from the shock. No one ever really catches me off guard like that. I landed hard on the barn floor and when I opened my eyes I was extremely confused with the sight I saw. The walls around me were white and I was sitting in a chair with a group of people around me. Oh my god…what happened? Where am I? Who the hell are all these people…I heard someone calling my name and I tried to focus on it and stop the cascade of thought flowing through my head. The voice was shrill and sing-songy.

“Clark.”

When I didn’t answer he changed his voice back to normal and called out.

“Earth to super freak.”

Everyone laughed and my head snapped up. Super freak…they couldn’t possibly know about my abilities…this has to be a trick….something Lex set up…but how?

I heard an older gentleman speak. He looked like he was in charge so I faced him. His voice was calm like he was talking to children.

“Everyone, please, sit down. Are you still with us, Clark?”

How does everyone know who I am? When I spoke was voice was semi frantic and a little loud.

“What's going on?”

The man sighed.

“Well, you said that you and your dog were in the barn when you heard something. And then you left us for a bit.”

What the hell was he talking about? I don’t even know who these people are I would never tell them about what goes on in my life especially if it involves my alien side. I took a deep breath. Ok I need to figure this out I was just in the barn…maybe if I ask someone here they’ll tell me what’s going on. I tried to calm my voice down but that wasn’t going so well.

“What are you talking about? How'd I get here?”

The people around me chuckled again. A guy who looked a little older then I with the nametag Arthur spoke to me in a sarcastic voice.

“So, what attacked you? Was it a Krypto-freak again?”

He laughed and I almost died. How does he know about the Kryptonians…This can’t be real…

Then another guy whose name was Victor interrupted the laughter.

“No, no, no, I know. It was a spirit from the Phantom Zone, right, Kal-El?”

No…it…it can’t be…these people were all laughing at me…at my heritage. They were looking at me like I was some kind of freak…This is why I never told people about who I was…this is what I was afraid of…why would I tell these people…why am I here. I tried to speak as firmly as I could.

“How do you know that name?”

He snickered.

“'Cause you never shut up about it, oh, great son of Jor-El.”

I looked at him with shock on my face. I would never tell random people about that…Never.

The older gentlemen clapped his hands and tried to get everyone’s attention.

“Settle down, gentlemen.”

To men dressed in white started to come over to me and put their hands on my upper arms. I jumped up and away from them. What’s going on….this really isn’t good I need to get out of here and find Chloe…she’ll be able to help me.

“Wait, back off!”

The older guy stood up and tried to use a calming voice with me.

“Take it easy, Clark. Take those deep breaths we talked about.”

Deep breaths we talked about? Who the hell was this guy? I’ve never seen him before a day in my life…These people are crazy!

“Who are you?”

He sighs.

“It's me... Dr. Hudson.”

He spoke it slowly as if I was hard of hearing or slow on the uptake. The two guys cam back and grabbed me from behind I jerked my body around gently and tried to warn them.

“Hold on. I don't want to have to hurt anyone.”

Arthur giggled and spoke in a crude tone.

“Why don't you just use your super speed and run away?”

I tried to overpower the guards…but I couldn’t…oh god…my powers…there gone…they must have done something to me…how am I going to get out of here without my powers…I started moving my body frantically. I was terrified of what these people were going to do to me. I started screaming for help because I didn’t know what else to do.

“What? Why are you doing this to me? What do you want? What's happening?! Let me go! Let me go! Please, someone! Why am I here?!”

I kept on screaming as they dragged me away down a long barely lit hallway. When we reached the end they threw me into a room that looked more like a cell and locked me in it. I ran to the door and put my hands on the small bars screaming at the orderlies.

“Please…please don’t leave me here….help me please….I’m a good person I don’t hurt people….there gonna hurt me here….”

My voice faded out as they walked away ignoring me…I fell to the floor on my knees…what was I going to do…I don’t have my mom…I don’t have Chloe…I don’t have my powers…all I have is me and somehow I just always seem to fall short of everyone’s expectations…even my own. I put my head in my hands and I prayed…

Back in The Real World…

(Chloe POV)

Lois and I were sitting in the Talon. We had just gotten back from a movie and Lois was looking into her cup of coffee as if it held all the answers to the world. I needed something to distract her. I know that Clark and I said we were going to tell Lois together about the baby but technically since the baby wasn’t his I didn’t really need him here to tell her. Telling Lana and everyone else…that was a different story. But Lois was my blood…she’d understand. I nudged her foot under the table and she smiled wistfully at me.

“What’s up cuz?”

I took a deep breath. It was now or never.

“I have to tell you something.”

She leaned closer and I could see her over protective nature kick in…Ah ha, go Chloe, step number one complete -  her immediate thoughts are no longer on Oliver…there on me!

“Whatever it is Chloe you know you can tell me…is it Smallville did he do something to hurt you? I’ll kill him.”

Her voice was fierce and I laughed.

“Actually is does have to do with Clark but not in the way you think…you remember when I was in the hospital?”

Lois gave me an 'are you kidding look'.”

“It’s not a site that I’ll soon forget.”

I nodded.

“Well I was told the only people who were aloud to stay with me for the first day or so was family.”

She mad an affirmative motion again.

“Get to the point Chloe…my patients has been running thin lately.”

She tried to say it sternly but I could see her smile slipping through.

“Ok …Long story short? Clark lied…He said the baby was his so that he could stay at the hospital with me…but he'd not…Clark's I mean.”

Lois’s mouth was wide open and I grinned. I didn’t think in all the time I’ve know Lois I have ever made her speechless…Score two for me! Her mouth was floundering like a fish before she composed herself and sat back in her chair with her arms crossed over her chest and a glare in my direction.

“You mean to tell me…you and Smallville have been lying to me all this time? Just wait till I get my hands on that farm boy…he’s a dead man.”

I chuckled.

“I thought you’d be happy to know the baby isn’t Clarks.”

She nodded.

“Oh trust me I am. I couldn’t imagine what his genes combined with yours would be like. Your kid would come out awkwardly inquisitive and having a clumsy reporter never works out well. He’d be trying to get the latest stories while fumbling all over himself…”

I made a face.

“Clark’s not that bad Lois…really.”

She winced and then gave me a hard look.

“I know…and now I have to be nice to him for a little while because here he is doing all this stuff for you…taking care of you and the baby…and it’s not even his. I’d be damned if Clark Kent wasn’t the most honest, loyal and naïve farm boy alive.”

She shook her head but had a smirk planted firmly on her lips. I smiled. She’s right…Clark is amazing and I love him so much… I rubbed my stomach. I wondered how it was going at the farm with fixing the tractors wheel. Clark was always trying to fix everything and anything. I wanted to spend the night at home curled up with him but Lois had called and he told me to go. He said she needed someone and he be waiting for me when I got home. Hopefully he fixed it already so that when I get home we could have some alone time…nice just me and Clark. I grinned as Lois continued mocking Clark…Hey I’m loyal to my man but if Lois was making fun of Clark and not moping over Oliver I’m sure Clark wouldn’t mind so much…after all my goal is to be helping Lois tonight…

(Clark POV)

I’ve been pacing around this room for what felt like hours…There are bars on the doors bars on the windows…it’s like I’m some kind of animal in captivity! I’m going out of my mind. I saw some guards passing my cell and ran up to the door trying to reason with them. My voice came out desperate.

“I don't belong in here! I'm not crazy. I don't belong here.”

My voice elevated at the end of the sentence. Oh yeah…there really gonna believe that Clark with the way your acting it’s no wonder they think your nuts…calm down. The guard slapped the window with a stick.

“Back away from the door.”

I tried to grab him and try my luck at over powering him but it didn’t work.

“Back away from the door!”

He yelled and in walked that Dr. Hudson guy. I was frantically searching for answers and what better way then asking this guy who apparently new everything.

“How'd I get here?”

He moved in closer and shook his head. He didn’t break eye contact with me when he spoke.

“Think back, Clark. You know how that happened.”

I shook my head and paced the length of the room. Yeah Lex managed to somehow get me into 33.1 and take away my powers…how good freak'n question. There was frustration in my voice when I spoke.

“Someone or something attacked me in my barn. This is 33.1... It's Lex. He's always wanted to get me under his microscope.”

He sighed and sat on the small bed in the corner.

“I'm afraid your obsession with Lex Luthor is part of the fantasy world that you created after you experienced your psychotic break.”

Ha-ha…psychotic break…good one! He’s insane…this is all part of his plans he wants me to think I’m nuts….he wants me to..to admit things and….just not question him. No way. I know I’m not crazy…and if I could just find Chloe maybe I’d be able to prove it…I hope she’s ok…Oh man this is…it’s crazy everyone here is crazy. I nodded my head and spoke to him with venom in my voice.

“Oh, I get it. You want me to think I'm crazy.”

Again he shook his head and spoke calmly. I really wish he wouldn’t do that it’s pissing me off and making me even angrier.

“I would prefer not to use pejoratives. You suffer from paranoid schizophrenia. You have for a number of years... after the death of your birth parents in the Smallville meteor shower.”

I shook my head I’ve had it with them. These people thought I was crazy…that my whole life was a hallucination…but it’s not. I faced him and my voice was unwavering.

“See, it's not true. My birth parents were out of town for the meteor shower.”

“You were placed in the wonderful adoptive home of the Kents. But like many children, you invented a make-believe world to help you deal with the trauma you endured. You convinced yourself that you came from another planet, that you possessed special powers and you used them to save humanity.”

I shook my head and started pacing again. I wouldn’t let him get to me. I couldn’t I won’t give anything about myself away. That’s what he wants…that’s what Lex wants.

“Whatever you're trying to do, it's not gonna work.”

He stood up and walked over to me. He tried to place his hand on my shoulder but I jerked away from him and he moved towards the door.

“An active imagination wasn't a problem when you were a boy. But when you entered your freshman year at high school, you slipped permanently into your fantasy world.
This isn't a game, Clark. You're sick. And your condition is getting worse. But the good news is, I have developed a new treatment that will cure you.”

And what…he thought I’d let him give me this magical cure? Over my dead body…I’d have to six feet under before I cooperated with anything that Lex was involved in…Screw you man I don’t but this act and I’ll find a way to prove to myself that my life isn’t a lie.

“Tell Lex that I don't buy it.”

His constant sighed was making me want to strangle him. He had a sad look on his face as he shook his head.

“Lex isn't your nemesis. And 33.1 doesn't exist. For the last 5 1/2 years, you've been a resident of the Fairview Psychiatric Hospital. Everything else -- your superpowers, your alien lineage, your secret identity... it's all a delusion.”

I wanted to scream…how do you prove something that no one else thinks is real…something there isn’t any proof of where you are but something that YOU KNOW is true…

It was a few hours later and I was in a main room looking around. Everyone was doing their own things. Some were painting, others watching TV and some were screaming and getting carried out of the room. I heard a woman’s voice come over an intercom.


“Time for medication.”

Then a man in a white outfit came over and started rounding everyone up.

“All right, let's go. Keep on moving. Keep on moving. That means you, too. Let's go.”

The nurse spoke to one of the patients and reprimanded him.

“Don't hide that pill under your tongue. Swallow it.”

As I stood in line a man started to speak over my shoulder. His voice was soft and conspiratorial.

“You're not crazy, Kal-El. We don't have much time, so listen to me closely. I believe you're from another planet.”

I hesitated even though his voice sounded so sincere. I wanted to spill everything to him just because he was the first person who finally believed me…but I didn’t I had to play this cool.

“What makes you say that?”

He spoke again quietly.

“Because like you, I'm not from here. I come from mars. You can't trust anyone.”

Great…Mars huh? I swear Chloe was right about the weirdoes that I attract. but something in me wanted to believe him. I saw two men walk over to him and inject him with something that brought him to his knees. I turned and yelled out.

“Hey!”

He glared at me.

“Don't even think about it.”

I watched them drag him away when I saw a hallway that was joined to where they were taking him. When they weren’t looking I saw a janitor and knocked him unconscious. I pulled him into the janitor’s closet and switched our clothes. I came out of the closet with a baseball cap on my head and continued to walk toward the exit. When I got out of the building I ditched the cap and ran as fast as I could with out my powers. Don’t let it be said that I’m not resourceful. I made it out of there but it’s not nearly the end…I have to find my mom and Chloe make sure there ok and then I need to find a way to get back home…where I’m needed.

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  05 Dec 2007 06:07
Labyrinth - Part B

Quote:
Chapter 8 Part B

(Clark POV)

I ran all the way back to the farm. By the time I got there I was sweating and having trouble breathing. I walked into the kitchen and tried to catch my breath. I glanced around and everything looked the same but the house felt….different…cold. I searched frantically for my mother and Chloe. They have to be here. Where else would they be? I went upstairs and ripped apart all the rooms. Nothing. I shook my head…The barn! My mom might not be there but I know Chloe would be. I walked into the loft and slowly went up the stairs. I called out my voice slightly wavering.

“Mom? Chloe!”

The person I saw was the last person I expected to be in my loft alone…It was Lana…what was she doing here? Oh my god…was she helping Lex? I felt a stab of pain in my chest. Her face brightened when she saw me. I squinted at her. She looked different…innocent.

“Clark, you're home! I can't believe it!”

She threw her arms around me and hugged my body tightly. I moved away from her and she seemed startled. I held her at arms length and looked into her eyes. They were glowing with happiness. I was so confused. I looked around the loft and noticed all her stuff was in it. It was like she had taken over my domain and made it a Lana shrine.

“What are you doing here? What are all your things doing in the loft?”

She stepped back and the smile left her face. She tilted her head and her eyes went from happy to concerned. She placed a gentle hand on my arm and I looked down at it. I got an itch to pull my arm away but I didn’t…everything here felt off. Something was wrong and I was desperately trying to figure out what it was. Her voice was soft when she spoke…trying to make me understand.

“Clark, this is my home now. After your Dad passed away, Nell and I bought the farm from your mom.”

She moved over and pointed to my telescope. I took that down months ago. What was it doing back up there?

She grinned.

“Not everything has changed. I kept this. You once said that looking through it brought me closer to you. And having it here makes me feel like you're always with me.”

What the hell was she talking about? I haven’t felt close to Lana in over a year and I certainly didn’t want her standing in MY loft with all of her crap lying around. Chloe was supposed to be here…she’s always here…I shook my head.

“I don't understand.”

She nodded and looked at me sympathetically. She walked over slowly and gave me a sad smile as she rubbed my arm. At this point this…Lana touching me made me want to rip off my skin. I wish she’d stop it.

“I know. This must be really hard for you. You've been gone a long time and a lot has changed. But none of that matters anymore. Freshman year, you promised me that we would never be apart. You were right.”

Okay…its official I am not the one who should have been institutionalized…apparently that should have been Lana. We weren’t together freshmen year. She was with Whitney…yea I was in love with her then but she didn’t see me that way…at least not at first. I looked around the loft again trying to see where all my stuff was. As I glanced around I caught sight of things that I haven’t had around in years. After a couple of sentences I spoke slowly to Lana so she could hear every word.

“We weren't dating then. You... you were with Whitney.”

She made a face and laughed. She raised an eyebrow at me.

“The football jock? Clark... there's only one person I've ever been in love with... you. It's okay. The doctor said that you'd suffer mild amnesia after the treatment.”

I closed my eyes. I really don’t know what I did to deserve this but whatever it was….I take it back. I promise never to do it again if you just let me find my mom and Chloe…This…this can’t be my home…it just can’t be…I’m not…crazy. I tried to speak as calmly as I could to Lana.

“What treatment? I didn't have any treatment.”

She shook her head.

“But you were released from the hospital.”

I looked at her warily and spoke in a hard voice.

“I wasn't released. I escaped. Lex Luthor put me in that hellhole.”

Lana shook her head and moved away from me. Her eyes were a bit wide and very sad.

“Lex didn't put you in there.”

I yelled at her then because I couldn’t take it anymore. Look at me everyone thinks I’m going crazy all because of Lex and she still defends him! I bet he could be ending the world and she’d stand there next to him saying…he has a good reason to destroy the world Clark…

“No! That's not right! I don't care if you two are engaged -- stop protecting him!”

She took another step back and her expression went from startled to frightened. She took a deep breath and her speech was slightly trembling.

“I hardly know Lex Luthor. I'm gonna call the hospital.”

I grabbed her and shook her body. She made a noise and I grabbed tighter.

“No, stop. You're lying. You're in on this, aren't you? He sent you here! That's why you're here -- to distract me until he shows up. Where is Chloe Lana!!!”

I jerked her body hard a few times.

“Where is she?”

Lana looked like she was about to cry and her voice came out shaky.

“Please stop.”

I suddenly felt extremely guilty. I needed to try and keep myself together and this was not helping me any. My voice was softer this time and I let her go.

“What did Lex do with my mother? Where is she?!”

Lana rubbed her arms and sniffled slightly. She shook her head and her voice was soft.

“She's probably at the mansion -- the Luthor mansion. Clark...”

I didn’t listen to what else she was saying I just left. The Luthor mansion…I don’t know what she was doing there but I didn’t care. if that’s where I could find her I’d go. She’ll know what’s going on and she’ll be able to find Chloe and together we can all figure this out…yea…it’ll all be ok soon…

Back in the Real World…

(Lex POV)

I slammed down the receiver of my phone and then swiped my arm across the desk and threw everything violently off of it. The green arrow and his merry men hit another 33.1 facility.  When I found this guy not only was he going to pay but I was going to keep him conscious during every part of his dismemberment. This isn’t just some random Meteor Freak either…it’s someone who knows me. Someone who is out for revenge. If I didn’t know any better I’d say it was Clark…but there is no way he can manage being in all these different places at once. So it wasn’t him. But who then? It’s not like there aren’t hundreds of people waiting in line to get back at me...but the difference is very few people would actually manage to get through all the layers that I have set out. Only someone with vast resources and an inner knowledge of me would be able to infiltrate my labs. I shook my head to try and clear my thoughts. There was a commotion outside my office door and I shook my head. People and there incompetence. I was about to get up and start yelling at them when I heard a familiar voice. I sat back down and raised an eyebrow as I listened from inside my office.

“Excuse me miss…Mr. Luthor has asked not to be bothered.”

“I’ll just be a minute.”

I heard my new secretary call security and I smirked. This should be interesting. I folded my hands together and waited.

“Get your hand’s off of me now. Do you know who I am?”

I could hear my assistant come from down the hall and start explaining to the men that they were manhandling my pregnant fiancé. Lana sounded absolutely livid. She was screaming.

“The two of you call yourself security? If I was such a threat to Mr. Luthor then you should have intercepted me downstairs. No wonder Lex is always getting hurt…the people he has working for him are incompetent.”

I chuckled. I had been thinking the same thing.

“And you…if you were doing your job right you wouldn’t have had to call security. As Lex’s assistant you are the face people see before they see him and therefore you should be well versed with the people he associates with on a day to day basis meaning you should know who I AM!”

I’m not sure if I mentioned this recently but I love Lana Lang. I got up and opened my office door. Everyone turned to face me and Lana gave me a half smile.

“Hey Lex…”

I walked over and gave her a kiss. I put my hand on the small of her back and looked around.

“Is everything okay Lana?”

She nodded. I looked at my new assistant who would most likely be let go later that afternoon and spoke directly to her.

“Please get my fiancé a glass of sparkling water. We’ll be in my office.”

I moved her with me and closed the door behind us. She looked around the office and raised an eyebrow. I chuckled and waved her expression off.

“It’s been a bad morning.”

“I can see that.”

I leaned against the desk and she looked down then back at me.

“I’m sorry about that Lex…she just made me so mad and then they grabbed me…I didn’t mean to cause a scene. This is a place of business…your business and I shouldn’t have over stepped my bounds.”

I grinned in her direction and pulled her to me. I gave her a kiss and then laughed.

“Lana…in a few weeks you’ll be my wife and what’s mine is yours. You had every right to say something. They should know who you are and no one should be putting there hands on you…ever I won’t allow that. So it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

She nodded and sat down. Lana doesn’t usually show up unannounced I wonder why she was here…not that I minded.

“So what brings you to my domain?”

She grinned and rested her hand on her slightly protruding stomach.

“I came by because this Friday night I need to make sure your schedule is clear.”

I smiled and stroked her hand gently.

“My schedule is always clear for you Lana…do we have dinner plans I didn’t know about?”

She gave me a hesitant smile.

“Kind of…you and I are going out to dinner with friends on Friday.”

I raised an eyebrow and chuckled. I wasn’t aware Lana and I had mutual friends. She could hear the amusement in my voice and she pouted.

“I see and who are these friends we’re dinning with.”

“Chloe and Clark…and before you say anything and interrupt me I worked very hard to get Chloe to agree. I know the two of you aren’t getting along and I respect that. But you are both extremely important to me and I need the two of you to at least tolerate each other…just for one night. Please.”

I sighed. Personally I didn’t mind. I enjoyed getting on Clarks nerves and Chloe was a good sparring partner until she got annoying.

“And Clark how long did it take to convince him?”

Lana actually looked away from me when I asked that.

“Well…Chloe hasn’t exactly told him yet…but she’s going to.”

I laughed. This is definitely a dinner I wouldn’t miss. I spoke to Lana for a few more minutes then she left saying she had an appointment for some kind of fitting. My cell phone rang not long after the door closed behind her.

“Hello.”

“Mr. Luthor…it’s Dr. Rhinehouse.”

I sat down.

“What can I do for you doctor?”

I heard some clanking in the background and shook my head.

“I wanted to let you know that the last of the supplement has been given to the patient and she should be ready for the first test in a week’s time.”

I smiled. Perfect. Just in time.

“Thank you doctor.”

I disconnected then call and leaned back in my chair. I smiled. Things were finally falling into place. The Green Arrow and his men might be invading my labs…but the real project was walking around town without a care in the world. I can’t wait to burst her perfect little bubble. After I find out the extent of her powers and I retrieve the source of said powers she won’t be of any use to me and I will then accomplish what many before me have tried and failed to do. I will kill Chloe Sullivan…

(Clark POV)

I walked into the mansion and glanced around for my mom. I never realized how much energy it took for people to run around all over the place. After searching half the mansion I spotted my mom in the study putting the phone back in its cradle. Oh god I’ve never been so happy to see anyone before.

“Mom? Thank god, you're okay.”

I ran over to her and hugged her. When she spoke she seemed both cautious and relieved.

“Oh, Clark! Oh, I've been a wreck all day. Everyone at the hospital is so worried about you.”

I stepped out of her arms like I’d been slapped.  No…there’s no way my mom would know I was in a place like that and let me stay there…


“You knew I was in that place?”

She nodded like it was the most normal thing I the world. Now that I was listening closely her voice seemed different.

“Dr. Hudson called Lionel the moment you disappeared. They've both been looking for you.”

Lionel…what did he have to do with this? Why did my mom let them keep me in that place? What id Lionel was pretending to help us…he probably told Lex all about me and they have been working together all this time to…to…my thoughts faded and I spoke to my mom.

“Lionel? He must be in on it. He must have told Lex the truth about me.”

She shook her head and took a step away from me.

“Clark, please, try to calm down.”

I was shaking my head again. I was frantic…how could I calm down. I can’t find one sane person in this whole freak'n town! I paced and got a crazy look in my eyes.

“Calm down? Mom, you don't understand. They put me in that asylum. They took away my powers.”

She shook her head back and forth and tried to put a hand on my arm but I pulled my body away from her. Her touch was just like Lana’s empty.

“No, sweetheart... it'll be all right.”

I turned around all of a sudden and grabbed her arm trying to move her by the door.

“Mom, we have to get you out of here. We have to get you away from Lionel.”

She pulled her arm away from me and gave me a hard look. Her stance was firm and her voice left no room for interruption.

“No, Clark. Lionel and I are married now. I-I meant to tell you, but I-I was afraid of how you'd react.”

I stumbled back and gave her a stricken look. How could she marry Lionel behind my back? How could she do that to dad? My voice was barley a whisper and it came out edged with shock and horror.

“How could you?”

Her voice was gentle.

“He's a good, decent man. Lionel's made sure you've gotten better care than I could ever afford.”

I snapped. I can’t listen to her talk about this…not anymore. I screamed in her face to try and get my point across.

“He's been lying to you!”

She shook her head and her voice was now stern.

“No, Clark. Dr. Hudson's treatment will make you well again. Please, I just want my son back.”

She wants her son back? Well guess what I want my mother back…I don’t know how much more I could take of this…they all seem so sincere and there all saying the same things…maybe I have been making all of this up…I shook my head. No this wasn’t my life….I just know it.

“No, you're coming with me right now.”

I pulled her along while she protested.

“No, no, I –“

She dropped her purse and I saw a bottle of prescription pills hit the floor. I frowned and bent down to pick them up. I read the bottle and it said Mrs. Martha Luthor on it. I snorted and then realized what was happening.

“They're drugging you, too.”

She looked at me sadly.

“Clark, those are my allergy pills.”

I saw her lean over and hit a button on the phone causing a loud alarm to sound throughout the mansion. I looked at her with hurt on my face.


“What are you doing?”

She glanced around the room and then at me and shook her head sadly.

“You need help, Clark.”

I wanted to cry. I was a grown man who just wanted to break down.

“Mom, you don't understand what's going on. You're coming with me.”

She frowned.

“No.”

I moved toward her and yelled.

“Right now!”

“No!”

The doors busted opened and two guards came into the room I’m assuming to stop me. I was trying to fight them off while talking to my mom.

“Come on! Mom! You have to –“

I was cut off by her yelling when one of the guards knocked me down.

“Please, don't hurt him!”

I was able to get away from both of them and I ran outside as fast as my feet would carry me. I heard a gunshot and pushed myself further. I could hear the guards screaming behind me.

“Stop! “

I didn’t listen just kept going.

“There's nowhere to run, Mr. Kent. Just relax and put your hands behind you.”

As they caught up to me with a gun pulled out I saw a car stop nearby. The passenger door popped open I pushed passed the guard and dove into the car. We took off and I looked behind us as several shots were fired. I didn’t know who was in this car and I didn’t care…Whoever it was had to be better than them. I finally glanced at the person next to me and I was shocked…


About twenty-five minutes later I was standing outside the Talon with Chloe. The moment I laid eyes on her relief flooded me. Chloe’s here and she’ll help me…I know it. God I had missed her. I watched her unloading the car.

“Chloe, how'd you find me?”

She grinned.

“Are you kidding me? I've been in GPS mode ever since my contact I.M.'d me about the breakout this morning.”

I nodded and smiled. That’s my Chloe. My smile turned to a frown.

“Look, I can't stay here. I don't want to get you involved.”

She shook her head and we went inside. Her voice was forceful but not mean.

“Clark, I already am involved. You think you're the only one whose life's been turned upside down by the Luthors? Why do you think I've been under the radar?”

What is she talking about. I haven’t heard anyone so much as mention her name since I’ve been out here.

“Chloe, they're after me, not you.”

We got upstairs to the Talon apartment and she put her stuff down.

“They're after both of us. Now, don't ditch your sidekick till you get your powers back. You might need me to cover you.”

I smiled. I walked over, grabbed her in my arms and kissed her. She seemed taken aback at first but then leaned into the embrace and the kiss. We broke a part a minute later and I rested my forehead against hers.

“I really missed you Chloe…I'm glad to see you. I was beginning to think I was actually losing it.”

She gave me a soft smile and gently flicked my chin.

“Chin up, Clark - once we get this thing on the front page, father and son Luthor are gonna be wearing matching orange jumpsuits.”

I nodded and gave her another soft kiss. When I pulled away I spoke seriously to her.

“Lex... I gotta go see him.

She looked worried.

“Wait a minute. You just got out, Clark. You're gonna go back into the devil's lair? Lex is more dangerous than ever right now.”

My face-hardened.

“Even more reason to stop him.”

But she shook her head. Her voice was intense and her eyes bore into mine.

“No, Clark, you don't have your powers back. You could get hurt like everyone else.”

I had to stop Lex and get everything back to normal.

“Powers or no powers, I won't let him do this to me.”

She sighed but finally stopped trying to convince me not to go. She dug her keys out of her pocket and handed them to me..

“All right, fine. Since your super speeds out of gas, take my Yaris. And be careful.”

I nodded, leaned my head against her for another minute kissed her and then went to leave. I heard her voice call out to me before I left. I turned and she hesitated.

“I just….I want you to know…if anything happens…just know that…I love you Clark.”

I froze and in that moment I knew. It was almost as if everything flashed before my eyes at once. I saw myself meeting Chloe for the first time, I saw her giving me my first kiss in the loft, I saw every time she was there for me all of my secrets she kept. Her devotion, her suffering. Every time she put her needs aside for mine and didn’t expect anything in return. Every kind word she threw my way even though I didn’t deserve half of them. She has been the one constant thing in my world for as long as I can remember. Throughout all the changes in my life Chloe has always been there and she always will be. Everything finally clicked and I could now define what I’ve been feeling all this time…it was love. I was in love with Chloe Sullivan…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  05 Dec 2007 06:21
Labyrinth - Part C

Quote:


Chapter 8 Part C

(Clark POV)

I pushed open the door’s to Lex’s office and barged in. He looked up at me and I saw hatred on his face.

“Surprised to see me?”

He was sitting behind his desk and his voice was cold as ice. His brows drew together and his expression turned hard.

“My father said you were out. I just never thought you'd have the nerve to show your face.”

Never thought I’d have the nerve? Is he kidding me…he locks me in some mental institution…takes my powers away and turns everything upside down and yet some how am to blame? My voice was loud but I wasn’t yelling.

“You may have taken my abilities, Lex, but I'm not afraid of you. And I won't let you ruin my life.”

He gave me a bitter chuckle. And his eyes were fierce as they bore into me. His voice was seething.

“Your... your life. I think you have that a little backwards. Did you forget our little run-in on the Loeb Bridge five years ago?”

How could I forget…it was the day Lex Luthor cam into my life…I should have listened to my dad then…instead I made the mistake of giving him a chance…look where that got us. I snorted.

“When you save someone's life, you tend to remember.”

If looks could kill I think I might have been a couple hundred feet below my grave with the glare Lex sent my way. He was shaking his head in furry.

“You really think you saved me. Well, then, let me refresh your memory.”

He moved back from his desk and now I could see why he was sitting there. He was in a wheel chair. He rolled out and came around and I saw that both of his legs below the knees were gone. No…no that’s not right…Lex….Lex isn’t in a wheel chair I would have known something like that…he can’t be…I saved him…it’s a…it’s a trick…

“I have to spend the rest of my life in this chair because of you.”

I shook my head frantically. I didn’t want to believe him.

“This isn't possible. I was there –“

He cut me off screaming as loud as he could now.

“And you caused the accident! Oh, you claimed you saw my car swerving out of control, so you jumped in front of it to save me with your superpowers. But when I jerked the wheel, my Porsche flipped end over end and wrapped around the guard rail.”

What….again I shook my head and vehemently denied his accusations.

“That's not what happened.”

His voice was lower now but just as hard as before.

“If it was up to me, you'd be rotting in jail. But my father insisted you go to that mental hospital instead. Anything to impress Martha Kent with his kindness.”

I screamed at him. I couldn’t take this anymore I was losing my mind.

“This is a trick. It's a trick!”

He looked at me disgusted.

“Really? Open your eyes, you crazy son of a *****! Does this look like a trick to you?! If there's one thing I regret in my life... it's that I didn't just run you over.”

And that was it…he rolled his chair back over behind the desk facing away from me. He was done talking which was just fine with me. I left I walked out and had no clue where to go…I feel like I’m losing my mind and there’s nothing to hold on to…Chloe…I needed to get back to Chloe. She’s want to know that I’m ok and we’ll be able to figure this out together we always do…


This time when I got to the Talon I walked in through the front instead of from the ally. I glanced around and the place was in shambles. Where is the coffee house?
I heard someone behind me…thank god Chloe…I turned around and it was Lana. I sighed.

“Clark. I knew you'd come here to see Chloe.”

I ignored her statement and looked around again. My voice was a bit horse when I spoke.

“What happened to the coffee house?”

She looked confused.

“Clark, this has been an abandoned movie theater for as long as I can remember.”

I shook my head. No it’s been a coffee house for like the last five or six years…

“No, this doesn't make sense. This can't be real. Lana, Lex said that I... caused his accident. Is that true?”

She didn’t answer my question but I could see the look of guilt in her eyes. When she spoke her voice came out hopeful...no…was the accident really my fault…did I cause Lex to lose his legs…am I sick?

“It's all in the past now. Clark, come back to the farm with me. We can get through this. We can get through anything.”

I just kept shaking my head I didn’t know what to do…all this talk about us being able to get through anything…her loving me…it stirred things inside of me…feelings I thought were 100% gone…apparently there not…NO…I would absolutely NOT betray Chloe…She would never betray me…and I love her…so much…she’s the one I can get through anything with…oh god…I need to get out of here this has to be fake…my own thought are starting to turn against me. I Don’t Want Lana Anymore! I tried to speak calmly when I finally addressed her.

“None of this makes sense, Lana. And you and I -- we're not together anymore.”

She smiled and gave me a wistful look.

“Ever since kindergarten, we've been together, Clark.”

I saw her pull out a plastic ring and show I to me. Okay a plastic ring…wow…I didn’t get it. She obviously understood that because she explained further to me.

“Thought that this would help you to remember. It's from the gumball machine at Quinn's Market. You gave it to me when we were 10 years old. You said that it was my wedding ring. And when you put it on my finger and kissed me for the first time, that's when you stole my heart.”

She looked so sincere when she spoke…the same Lana I fell in love with…my voice came out as a whisper.

“I don't remember.”

She frowned and moved closer to me.

“You suffered so much in that hospital. Every weekend when I'd come to visit, I could see it in your eyes. I never gave up hope that you'd get better.”

No…I couldn’t…I wouldn’t let myself fall into this trap…not again.

“I don't know what's going on. But Chloe does. She knows who I am.

Lana shook her head quickly and tried to grab at my arm.
“Clark, you shouldn't see her right now.”

Why was she trying to keep me away from Chloe? Oh god….something must be wrong…I need to stop listening to everyone else and I need to get to Chloe…she’s the only person who believes I’m not crazy…I ran up the stairs and into the Talon apartment. I didn’t see Chloe at first so I frantically screamed her name.

“Chloe!”

She came around the corner and smiled. I hugged her tightly.

“Thank god you’re ok.”

She gave me a confused look and then shrugged it off.

“Clark, thank God.”

I frowned.

“What's going on?”

She started packing everything and talking a mile a minute.

“We have to get out of her right now. Lex and his men took everything. They're trying to wipe me off the face of the earth.”

I hesitated…I wonder if Chloe knew…

“You know, Lex is in a wheelchair.”

She looked over her shoulder at me and raised an eyebrow. Her voice was firm.

“Clark, when it comes to the Luthors, you can't trust anything, okay? We gotta go subterranean until you get your powers back.”

I knew I should listen to her…but something kept nagging at me…what if I was wrong…what if all this time I’ve been normal and everything has been in my head? I wanted to be normal…

“But, Chloe, I'm not so sure. Nothing's the way it's supposed to be. It all seems so crazy.”

She looked up at me with a frantic expression…Her voice was unsteady and she spoke quickly and a bit loud.

“We're not crazy. We're not crazy. We're just the only two that know the truth. That's why they put us in the mental institution.”

Just then Lana walked in and the look on her face was sad…and there was something else I couldn’t quite pinpoint. Her voice was soft and sugary sweet.

“I tried to tell you.”

I looked at Lana then back at Chloe. Chloe’s expression turned sour.

“What's she doing here?”

I didn’t answer but Lana kept talking.

“Chloe was in Fairview with you.”

I looked startled. I turned to Chloe and spoke low.

“You were in that place, too?”

She nodded but finished her task of gathering everything we needed.

“They put me in that snake pit to shut me up.”

Lana spoke again trying to convince me…

“You know that she has a family history of mental illness.”

How does Lana know about that? Chloe would never tell anyone that. She’s freakishly close with Lois and eve she doesn’t know. Chloe’s voice was upset now and a little uneven like she was trying to hold it together.

“Don't listen to her, Clark. She's just trying to confuse you.”

I looked at Lana…

“Clark, please, just come with me. And I'll get you the help that you need.”

This right here…was the story of my life. Lana and Chloe though there were friends they were always pulling me back and forth…and usually I would side with Lana because…well that’s just usually how it happened. This time though…I wasn’t going to make that mistake. I don’t care what I was thinking who was saying what…I was going to side with my heart…and my heart…that lies with Chloe. I must have taken to long in answering because Chloe picked up all her stuff in a huff and started to walk out the door. She spoke over her shoulder.

“I should have known you'd never be able to resist her. You never could. If she's here, it means they're not far behind.”

Couldn’t resist her…no…yes I can Chloe…I’m not gonna let you down I’m here. I ran after her down the stairs.

“Chloe, hold on! Just stay here! We'll figure this out!”

She shook her head and I grabbed her arm.

“I’m here Chloe…we’ll handle this together like we do everything else…I won’t leave you…”

She gave me a small smiled leaned up and kissed me hard. When she pulled away her face was solemn and her voice was soft but it held fear.

“There's nothing to figure out, Clark. I know who you really are, and they're gonna kill me for it. I have to go you can come with me or stay here! Your choice.”

We finished descending the stairs and ran right into the guards from the Luthor mansion…Oh no…I moved closer to Chloe….and they spoke to me.

“Mr. Kent, just take it easy.”

After that everything happened in slow motion…I saw Chloe reach into her bag…when her hand came back into view there was a gun in it. One of the guards looked over at her moved his gun towards her and fired. I heard screaming in the background and I think it might have been me. I ran and by the time I got the three feet to her she was already down on the ground. I lifted her in my arms and I could feel the warm liquid moving over my hands…I looked down at her body and tears pooled in my eyes. Oh god…oh Chloe…I failed again…she can’t die I need her I can’t do this without her…..

“Chloe? Chloe. Chloe!”

She gasped at me and her breath was coming in quick spurts.

“Clark, I'm not crazy.”

Please…please don’t leave me….everyone I love leaves me….not Chloe too…

She looked into my eyes and her voice was fading..

“I..love…you…”

I felt wet drops pouring down my cheeks. I didn’t even realize I was crying…I screamed and rocked her in my arms..

“No. No! Chloe? Chloe?”

and then I felt her body go limp against mine…I put my head down…..this was my last chance and I blew it… I promised to protect Chloe and the baby….and again I couldn’t do it… I was loosing both of them….it was just then that I realized something…I glanced at Chloe’s stomach…she wasn’t pregnant…that’s…not right….this couldn’t be real…Chloe isn’t pregnant….a spark of hope ignited in me while my blood covered body was dragged away from Chloe’s lifeless one.


(Clark’s Thoughts)

They had me in a straight jacket…they had me sitting here and everything around me seemed like it was spinning out of control. Nothing made any sense…They keep telling me that Chloe is dead….that I was there when she was shot and killed…but that wasn’t Chloe…I know it wasn’t. I keep trying to tell them that Chloe was pregnant and the woman who was shot was not and therefore it couldn’t have been her…every time I say that they shoot me up with more drugs…so I obviously stopped voicing my opinion on the matter.

The doctor’s, Nurse’s, patients…they all had the names of the people I knew and loved…the people I said were part of my world. Milton Fine…Raya…A.C…Oliver Queen…Victor Stone…there all here and yet they weren’t. Nothing was what it should be and I was starting to think that everyone was right. I am lost…I am crazy and my heart hurts so bad I feel likes it’s been ripped out of my body and put into a blender…I miss Chloe…she was the only one who believed me…I didn’t even get to tell her I loved her…

An hour ago Dr. Hudson took Meteor rock out in front of me…I cowered away until I realized it wasn’t having any effect on me at all. Maybe they were all right…maybe I wasn’t who I thought I was. Maybe everything has all been in my mind…and maybe if they think that they could help me…I should let them…



(Clark POV)

I was in my room sitting against the wall when I heard someone speaking to me…calling my name. I walked over to the bars on my window and it was the same guy from earlier…the one who claimed to be from Mars. He spoke through the bars on my room.

“You can't give in, Kal-El. You must resist. None of this is real.”

I shook my head and moved away from him. I laid on my bed dejectedly.

“Leave me alone.”

His voice was quiet but firm.

“Listen to me. When you were attacked in the barn, you were infected by a being that you released from the Phantom Zone.”

I shook my head again…no…no…I’m sick…there is no Phantom Zone…

“The Phantom Zone doesn't exist.”

He sighed.

“Yes, it does. And if you were a human, that spirit would have taken you over with ease, like Zod did with Lex Luthor. But you're a lot stronger than that. You're Kryptonian.”

I gave him a bitter chuckle…

“You're a patient in a mental hospital. You're just as crazy as I am.”

He spoke louder now…his voice was determined but I didn’t care…I wanted Chloe back and I was tired of fighting…I was tired of being alone.

“If you give in to Hudson and undergo this treatment, the entity will gain control of your body with all its powers and unite the other fugitives from the Phantom Zone. Together, they'll enslave all of mankind.”

I sat up and looked at him. He seemed serious…but you never know…I gave him an appraising look…and spoke.

“If this is all in my head, then how are you here?”

He took a deep breath.

“I'm in your mind as well, trying to help. But there's only one way to purge this parasite and regain your consciousness. You have to kill Hudson.”

Is he kidding me? What is it with everyone wanting me to kill people. Every damn person on this planet and the next is always trying to turn me into a murdered…

“Kill Hudson? I can't kill a man.”

His voice was harsh.

“He's not a man. Hudson's a Phantom.”

If he was going to be so insistent I was going to through his own words back in his face.

“You told me not to trust anyone. Why should I trust you?”

His voice was soft…

“You know who you are, Kal-El. Trust yourself.”

Just them some guards cam over and started giving him a hard time. They were trying to over power him and he glanced back at me..

“Look within. Believe in yourself. The future of mankind depends on it.”

The guard started taunting him with fire saying something about Mars begin a red-hot planet and then knocked him out a couple seconds later. I watched two of them drag him away while the third cam and spoke to me.

“It's time, Mr. Kent.”

I nodded and he opened the door to my room and I followed him into a room where Lana and Dr. Hudson were waiting for me.

They strapped me down to a cold table in the room. Lana was standing off behind a glass window and I could see her smiling…I wanted that to be Chloe…they told me all the pain I was feeling would go away once this was done…it would all be better…I need it to be better I need to be normal….I saw Dr. Hudson getting a large drill ready. He turned it on and started moving it toward my head…As I was laying there something just didn’t feel right…something was off I was about to close my eyes and just let everything go when I heard a noise that sounded vaguely familiar…was that…yea it was. A dog barking…I looked up startled.

“Shelby?”

Oh my god that guy was right…I’m still in the barn…which means all of this is fake…Chloe’s not dead… My voice became stronger as I spoke.

“I'm still in the barn.”

I heard more barking and I started to fight back against my restraints. The doctor’s voice seemed cold all of a sudden as he spoke.

“Settle down, son.”

Shelby barked more and I pulled harder at my bonds.

“I know who I am!”

He barked louder and an orderly tried to stop me.

“Just relax, Mr. Kent, please.”

Then Dr. Hudson spoke frantically.

“Clark, Stop it! You're having another episode. Think about Lana. You could be together at last.”

Shelby just kept on barking I looked up at the window and Lana was fading…then I saw Chloe…I saw her laughing with her hand on her stomach…she was saying something but I couldn’t hear it. I ripped out of the straps and started throwing the orderlies out of my way…I needed to get to her right before she disappeared I saw her lips moving and I concentrated on them….she was saying…come home Clark…that did it. I grabbed the doctor around his throat and squeezed.

“Get out of my mind!”

As I held onto him tighter I saw his face change into the phantom and the scenery around me suddenly changed and I was back in the barn. The man in my mind…the one from Mars was standing above me with some kind of device that I saw the phantom fly into. When I could finally feel it out of my body I stood up slowly and faced the man in my barn.

“It's you.”

He nods and his eyes glowed red.

“Welcome home, Kal-El.”

He took off flying out of the barn in a streak of red just as I saw Chloe slowing jogging in.

I heard her voice and felt joy for what felt like the first time in days. I turned around and faced her. She looked confused.

“Clark? Clark, are you all right?”

I pulled her to me and kissed her…it lasted for a while and when we were done I just kissed her again. When she pulled away I grabbed her in my arms and hugged her tightly. She tried to move away but I wouldn’t let her go.

“Not yet…”

She patted my arm and I moved her back so I could look into her eyes. Her eyebrows were draw together and she looked like she had a million questions.

“Hey…”

I cut her off. I took a deep breath and looked her right in the eyes.

“I love you Chloe.”

Her eyes widened and her mouth fell slightly open. I chuckled and shook my head.

“I don’t know why it took me so long to realize it…but I am so in love with you. I’m sorry I made you wait so long…I’m sorry we missed out on so much time because I was caught up with other things…just know I won’t miss out on anymore time now…I’m here not with anyone else just you.”

Her confusion only got larger but she smiled.

“I love you to Clark…”

I smiled and kissed her again. Oh man…I could kiss Chloe forever..

(Chloe POV)

We headed in the house and he started to tell me about what happened. Apparently the Phantom was messing with Clark. I shook my head things are definitely never boring here. His voice held disbelief when he spoke.

“You're sure I was only out for a second?”

I nodded.

“I was walking from my car when I heard you fall, and by the time I got to the barn, you were on your feet.”

He rubbed his neck.

“It felt like a lifetime.”

He didn’t exactly go into details about his little dream world but me being ever the reporter, I wanted to know. I moved into his arms on the couch and he smiled and wrapped his arm around me.

“So, who was I in your alternate universe? Editor in Chief of the Daily Planet? Or a Pulitzer Prize winner, maybe?”

He hesitated and then gave me a dodgy smile.

“Something like that, yeah. The important part is... you were the one person who believed in me. I don't know what I'd do without you, Chloe.”

I chuckled. There was something he wasn’t telling me…but I’d leave it…if he needed to talk about it I know he’d come to me. So I decided a joke would bode better.

“Oh, is this when I'm supposed to cue the Barry Manilow music?”

He grinned.

“No, seriously. I love you Chloe.”

My smile lit up the whole room…I don’t think I’d ever get used to him saying that…but you better believe I’ll make sure he says it’s enough so that I do!

“I love you too.”

If this was how life was going to be from now on…it’s definitely something I could get used to.

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  06 Dec 2007 01:03
Next is the author's twist on Crimson - Part A

Quote:


Chapter 9 Part A

(Chloe POV)

It was two days before Valentine’s Day and since things have been crazy for the last week or so I’m not even sure Clark remembered. Hopefully he did because this would be our first Valentine’s Day as a couple…yes I did just get all mushy…it’s the hormones…really. So anyway if he didn’t remember I had a wonderful way of jogging his memory. The Talon Valentine’s Day Bash, which was tonight. We were out at dinner earlier and when we had left I insisted I needed a cup of coffee. And so here we are walking into the Talon. I saw his face scrunch up and he looked around at all the decorations. He looked down at me and I smiled.

“Chloe, what the heck is this? I thought we were coming in here to get a coffee”

I shrugged and fanned innocence.

“I didn't know. I swear. I'm sorry, Clark.”

He gave me a playful glare.

“You did to know and you’re not sorry. What am I gonna do with you Chloe?”

I raised an eyebrow.

“Was that a rhetorical question? Or do you want an answer because I have several ideas.”

I winked at him and waggled my eyebrows. He chuckled and shook his head. His voice held amusement when he spoke.

“What is it you always say about Valentine's Day? Oh, yeah. Our annual sneak peek at hell”

I glared at him. He was not going to be this cynical I wouldn’t let him…not while he’s with me at least.

“That was always because I was never spending Valentine’s Day with the person I wanted to spend it with…”

His face softened and he leaned down and kissed me gently. When he moved back up I grinned.

“Besides don't you think after being trapped in a front seat to the Clark/Lana operetta I deserve a good v-day?”

The expression on his face looked hurt and he made a move to put his arm around me as we walked over to the counter.

“You're the only person who can make me feel guilty, relieved, and a little sad all in one sentence.”

I smiled.

“Why are you feeling guilty?”

He shrugged and didn’t look at me as he spoke.

“For all the years I ignored what was right in front of me…for…hurting you the way I did.”

I rubbed his arm. Clark Kent had way too much guilt for my liking…it was unacceptable.

“Well no worries the past is the past and this year things are good…I finally have what I’ve been asking for and you…well you have me…”

He chuckled. We were standing there leaning in for a kiss when Lois interrupted us.

“Ok guys…seriously get a room that’s just gross…no one wants to see you macking on Smallville.”

I smiled and Clark glared at her. He moved an arm around me and turned to Lois who was standing next to Lana…what is Lana doing with Lois? I didn’t know they hung out. I mean I haven’t seen Lana in a couple of weeks now so this was an interesting development. Clark sighed and spoke.

“Hey Lana…Lois. What brings you guys here?”

Lana smiled and patted Lois’s arm.

“I thought I’d get her out. I figured this would be a great place for her to meet someone.”

I looked and Lois’s face and it was pained. I could tell she’d rather be anywhere but here right now. She was still having a hard time dealing with Oliver’s departure even though she wouldn’t admit it. I saw Lois looked around at the decorations and she winced.

“Whoa... Is it really wrong that I want these chubby cherubs to burst into flames?”

Clark chuckled and I gave her a small smile. Lana shook her head and looked at Lois. Her voice was soft and amused when she spoke.

“The way I see it, Valentine's Day is the one day a year where it’s ok to be all sentimental about everything…it’s a day you get to share with the one person in the world who gets you.”

The three of us raised our eyebrows at her and she laughed. Lois snarked at Lana good-naturedly.

“Even your definitions of thing’s are picture perfect…is there anything you’re not good at Lana?”

I smiled and Lana looked thoughtful.

“I’m really bad at chess.”

She sounded so serious that all three of us cracked up and she shrugged. Clark had his hand on the small of my back and he was moving his hand in rhythmic circles. I leaned into him and he smiled down on me. He leaned down and kissed my neck and I grinned. I heard Lana’s voice and Clark must have to because he pulled away from my neck. Her voice was playful and at the same time irritated.

“Welcome to the love fest.”

Lois nodded.

“Yeah, and me without my Uzi.”

She was worse then Clark…I didn’t think that was possible. Lana looked over at me and smiled.

“Why don’t you and I go get a coffee and catch up Chloe. I haven’t seen you in a while. We can compare pregnancy notes.”

The minute I stepped away from Clark I felt an uneasiness sweep through my body…Clark must have noticed because his hand touched my arm.

“You ok?”

I nodded and gave him half a smile. I whispered for him to keep Lois company while Lana and I went to go talk. He nodded and I left with Lana and a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. It’s probably me just worrying too much. It’s been quiet the last few days and I’m not used to the lack of activity…I’m sure that was it….I mean what could possibly go wrong at a stupid Valentine’s Day party?


(Lois POV)

I thought Chloe loved me…why would she leave me alone with everyone’s favorite farmer. I shook my head. Well that wasn’t as bad as what Lana had suggested earlier to me. I shivered. The girl is sweet but seriously crazy if she thought Smallville and I would ever make a good couple. Clark glanced in my direction and spoke softly to me.

“So…I didn’t know you and Lana were friends…”

I shrugged.

“There’s a lot of things you don’t know Smallville.”

He nodded but didn’t snark back. He spoke again but didn’t face me he was looking off to his right. I followed his gaze and it was on Chloe in a booth in the far right of the Talon with Lana.

“When did that happen?”

I sighed.

“We got somewhat close when we attended a lot of the same functions. Lex and…Oliver would make their rounds so Lana and I would hang out. She’s pretty cool.”

He nodded.

“Yeah…so..are you..”

I cut him off. I didn’t want anyone asking about Oliver. I was over it. We were together now we’re not. No big deal. So I changed the subject to something that would distract him.

“She actually made a really disgusting suggestion to me earlier today…she implied that if you and Chloe weren’t seeing each other that you and I would make a great couple.”

I saw him practically choke on himself and I laughed.

“Oh god…what did you say to her?”

I chuckled at his horrified look.

“I told her that you and I…”Us” That would be like hot fudge and halibut.”

He glared at me.

“I take it I'm the halibut.”

I smiled.

“Naturally.”

He shook his head.

“Well, I've had my fill of fat babies with arrows. I’m gonna see if I can get Chloe to take off with me. Knock yourself out, Lois.”

He walked away and I shook my head. At least I wasn’t the only one alone tonight. Lana was here alone…who was I kidding though…Lex was most likely home waiting for her. I sighed. I heard a voice behind me so I turned to face a lady sitting at a booth. I raised an eyebrow at her and she spoke again.

“Little down on love?”

I snorted.

“After my breakup, cupid could use me for target practice, and I still wouldn't feel anything.”

She smiled and her eyes sparkled.

“Then maybe you need a little euphoria elixir or romance remedy. Just a nudge in order to move on.”

I Took a deep breath…I love Oliver and unfortunately it’s not going away anytime soon.

“Move on?”

I scoffed.

“Honey, you're talking to somebody who's still waiting for acid-wash to come back in style.”

She smiled at me and took out a small tube of lipstick.

“Try this. It's made with jasmine and a mixture of aphrodisiac oils. I get the brilliant hue from red meteor rocks.”

I raised an eyebrow. This lady couldn’t be for real. She thought lipstick was going to make me move on…fall in love with someone new…some people put way too much confidence in cosmetics.

“This is gonna make me fall in love with someone new?”

She smiled at me and I saw a look I didn’t recognize on her face.

“The first man you set eyes on.”

Might as well try it…even if this lady is a kook the color might look nice on me.

“Hmm... who knows? Maybe this color will look good on me, huh?”

I looked into the mirror on the stand and put the lipstick on. For a minute it looked like my lips glowed and then the red settled and left an unnatural red sheen. I blotted my lips and saw Clark walk by in the mirror I was looking in. I stood up and looked over at him. Has he always looked so incredibly sexy? Mmm look at those arms. I smiled and sighed his name.

“Clark.”

I knew exactly how I was going to spend my Valentine’s Day…and it wasn’t mooning over Oliver Queen…


(Clark POV)

I walked down the stairs to the kitchen and thought back to last night. I knew why Chloe brought me there I wasn’t as dense as everyone liked to believe…but I didn’t forget about Valentine’s Day. Actually it’s the only thing I’ve been thinking about for a while. I wasn’t sure what to get Chloe and I didn’t want to have to ask her what she wanted I wanted to just know. I sighed as I reached the kitchen. I saw my mom and she smiled at me as she dialed a number. She looked around as she waited for someone to answer.

“Where’s Chloe?”

I opened the refrigerator to get a drink.

“She had an early morning at The Planet.”

My mom nodded and I heard her start talking to whoever was on the phone.

“Yes, I'm calling to RSVP for the engagement party. Martha Kent. Thank you.”

She turned her attention back to me.

“Hi! How was the Valentine's party?”

I chuckled.

“So Chloe did know…I knew it…she’s a little sneak.”

I had a smile on my face and my mom laughed.

“I haven’t seen you this happy in a long time Clark…it’s nice.”

I turned to her and my smile widened.

“I haven’t been this happy in a while…and thanks mom.”

There was a knock at the door and my mom went to go answer it. A minute later she came back in the room with Lois. I was looking down at the drink I was pouring as I spoke.

“Hey, Lois, listen, I'm sorry that Lana pulled you to that party last night. I mean, after Oliver and...”

I lifted my head up and saw a very Playboy bunny looking Lois…My mom’s eyes were a bit wide and I couldn’t help but stare. Oh my…what in the world is she wearing? Her eyes were fixed on me and she walked closer. Warning bells were going off in my head. Something was very wrong. I had no clue what to say to her…I was speechless. When she spoke her voice was low.

“Oliver's history. Actually, Mrs. K, can you give us a couple minutes?”

I whipped my head over to my mom and gave her a look that clearly said don’t leave me alone with Lois…she obviously didn’t take the hint.

“Yeah. Um, I-I'll be upstairs.”

She left and Lois closed the distance between us.

She is way to close for comfort…I am in a very bad position at the moment…this is really not good.

She sighed and leaned closer to me. Crap!

“Here we find ourselves -- all alone.”

She picked up one of my hands in hers and I gave her a confused look.

“Wow. How did I never notice what big, strong hands you have?”

Lois has gone mad…I’m officially convinced. I gave her a semi nervous chuckled and pulled my hand away from her.

“What's going on, Lois?”

She shrugged and took a step away from me. Thank god.

“Well, you know me. I'm not very good with words, so... “

She pulled out a CD case and smiled as she handed it to me.

“People don't think Whitesnake sings power ballads, but they do.”

She made me a mix? That’s…nice??? Odd??? Weird??? Take your pick of adjectives.

I spoke to her with amusement in my voice.

“You made me a mix CD.”

She smiled broadly and spoke happily.

“Yeah. I will kill you if you tell anyone this, but... there is nothing that I love more than slow-dancing with some big, strong arms around me... just like yours, Smallville.”

As she said each word her body got closer and closer to mine until she was wrapping my arms around her.

Holy crap Lois was hitting on me…but…but I’m with Chloe…Lois…wouldn’t do that…right?

I pried her out of my arms and moved her away.

“Lois…you do realize that I am with Chloe…right?”

She tossed her hair over her shoulder and gave me a sexy smirk as she walked back over to me.

“What Chloe doesn’t know won’t hurt her Clark…I can do things to you that Chloe would never dream of doing…”

Breathe Clark. I need to get the hell out of here. Lois was out of her mind and she was propositioning me! I had to go talk to Chloe…maybe she’d know what the hell got into Lois…but how was I gonna get out of here? I looked around and then realize the CD was still in my hand.

“L-Lois, why -- why don't you go put this on?”

She sighed but moved away from me. Thank god.

“Okay.”

As she went into the living room I super sped out of the kitchen and straight to Chloe. This was somehow going to come back and bite me in the ass…I just know it. I sighed.

(Chloe POV)

I was sitting at my desk at The Planet when Lana in. I smiled at her and she sat down across from me. She placed her hand on her stomach, which wasn’t to far behind mine in size and smiled back at me. I broke the silence first.

“Lana. I'm kind of surprised to see you here. We haven’t really spoken much in the last few weeks.”

She nodded and her expression became more serious.

“Yeah, I know that we left things in a weird place.”

Weird isn’t the word for it. Lana had been mad at me after the whole Linda Lake thing and it had just gotten worse since then. She’s been on some kind of mission to find out Clark’s secret and I’m not going to be the one to point her in the right direction. She continued with her thought before I could speak.

“Chloe, I know that all the fight’s we’ve been getting in are either because of Lex or Clark…and some of it is my fault. I won’t ask you about Clark anymore…I know that whatever he is…hiding…if he wants me to know then he’ll tell me…and if not…I won’t dwell on it. I also know that you don’t like Lex and when you tell me all these things about him and what he does that you're just looking out for me, and you've done your Maid-of-Honor duty and asked the tough questions, but I was hoping that we could just get past this.”

I was startled. Did she just say what I thought she did?

“Okay. Case closed. Did I, uh, did I miss something? Maid of Honor?”

She smiled at me.

“Yeah. I hope that you're not allergic to taffeta. That's actually why I came by. Will you stand up with me?”

I didn’t want to…I do not like Lex and I don’t want him marrying Lana…but what kind of friend would I be if I didn’t stand by her during this? She needs me and I wasn’t going to let her down…I need her to know that she has people outside of Lex who love her…because maybe if she knew that when things got bad and it was time for her to pick her side she’d choose us instead of him.

“Of course.”

We stood up at the same time and I hugged her. She squeezed me back and our stomachs touched. I chuckled and she shook her head with a smile firmly planted on her face. When we pulled apart I sat back down. We talked for a little bit and then she had to go. She and Lex had a doctor’s appointment today where they were going to find out the sex of the baby.

I shook my head and started working on my article. I just passed the fifth month mark on my pregnancy and I could tell Clark was starting to get anxious. He was always hovering…but it was nice to know he was there if I needed anything. The last time I saw Jimmy was two weeks ago. He was sent on assignment and I just found out from a friend on the second floor that he was promoted to a field reporter. He wouldn’t be coming back to The Planet and you know what…I was fine with that. I had Clark I didn’t need anyone else.

Speaking of Clark he sent me the sweetest arrangement of flowers this morning with an adorable card and everything. I don’t think I mentioned today how grateful I am to him…He’s…My thoughts were interrupted by the object of my desire. He seemed slightly miffed. I leaned over and kissed him. He was looking around then his eyes landed on me and he spoke.

“We were supposed to meet 20 minutes ago at the coffee house across the street. Where have you been?”

Crap that’s what I had forgotten. I gave him a sheepish smile.

“Sorry Clark…I got distracted…anyway I did some digging into our favorite Martian Manhunter, but it's just coming up empty.”

He waved it off and his voice was serious and I saw his arms cross over his chest.

“We have another Manhunter to worry about...Lois.”

I laughed at him…what in the world was he talking about?

“Why does that make me picture her wielding an ax at every man in Metropolis?”

I saw him duck his head and shake it slightly. His voice came out mumbled.

“She's only after one man. Lois is... into me.”

I left the house for exactly five hours and Clark was on crack…what was I going to do with him. I laughed for a couple of seconds and then tried talking.

“She's into you? What, like... “

He handed me a CD and I looked it over. OH.MY.GOD…She made him a CD. I giggled. This was too funny. It had to be some kind of joke…Lois wouldn’t do that to me.

“Wow. She really pulled out all the stops.”

Clark sighed and moved off the desk. He walked in front of me and spoke.

“She's not herself, all right? It's like she overdosed on Love Potion # 9 or something... “

I laughed even louder…Clark knows what love potion #9 is. When I read the back of the case I laughed harder and Clark started to get frustrated.

“This isn't funny!”

I nodded.

“Your right.”

“Chloe, we have to find out what happened before she strikes again.”

I glanced over to the door and saw Lois heading this way. What was she wearing? I grinned at Clark…

“Too late.”

Her voice sounded kind of weird when I heard her speak.

“There you are. I have been searching all over for you. Look what I got.”

She pulled her shirt back a bit and revealed a large tattoo with “Lois and Clark Forever” written on it. My mouth dropped open. She then moved over and rubbed herself against him.

“Maybe you could get one to match.”

Family or not I was going to kill her! She needs to back off Clark and if Clark didn’t rectify this situation quickly he’d be sleeping on the couch for a while. He must have seen my face because he pushed Lois away from him and I stuttered a bit when I spoke. I was still a little shocked seeing Lois like that.

“I-I think you're right about that story. I'm gonna look into it.”

I started to walk out when I heard Clark.

“Uh, Chloe –“

I rolled my eyes.

“Hey Lois why don’t you come with me?

She shook her head.

“I’d rather stay here with him.”

She ran her hands up and down his arms. I was really starting to get mad at her…I gave Clark a look saying he was on his own but as I walked out I whispered to him with a stern voice.

“You better make sure she keeps her hands where everyone can see them Clark Kent…same goes for you…”

And I walked out. Time to find out what body snatcher has Lois on and fix it…fast before she molests my boyfriend.

(Clark POV)

I looked down at Lois and she grinned at me.

“Hi, you.”

I gave her half a smile.

“Hi. Lois. Now, Lois –“

She was practically groping me.

“You can pour on the modesty all you want, Smallville. It only makes you that much more adorable.”

I moved us to a corner of the office and she took that opportunity to pull me into a secluded room.
Wonderful…I keep getting myself deeper and deeper. I moved her away fro my body trying to keep the distance between us.

“Lois, what happened to you when I left last night?”

I saw her thinking back as she tried to rub herself against me.

“Went home... alone. But you know where I wanted to be.”

She cornered me and pushed me against the wall. Her head came out and planted a passionate kiss on my lips…I grimaced and then I started to feel warm…my body tingled and I felt sparks fly through me. My eyes glowed red and I pulled away from Lois and smirked. I pushed her away from me and she looked startled. I shrugged.

“Sorry I have someplace to be…I enjoyed it while it lasted though…maybe next time a little less tongue…see ya later Lo”

I winked at her and super sped away. Time to go find Chloe…

After checking five million places I finally came back to the farm and lo and behold Chloe was in the loft. I appeared next to her and she looked up. She smiled.

“How’d you lose Lois?”

I shrugged.

“I super sped away.”

Chloe looked up at me to see if I was serious. She stood up and frowned.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing…have I told you that you look amazing today?”

She smiled and I moved closer and started kissing her. As my kisses got more intense she moved away a little bit and chuckled.

“Nothing screams romance like a dusty old barn.”

I raised a brow at her.

“You want better?”

I lifted her up and super sped her into the house and to my bedroom.

She looked slightly taken aback and I started kissing her again. She kissed me back. I started moving us to the bed and I gently tossed her on it. She gave me a weird look and I climbed up and on top of her. She felt so good…so soft. She smelt like lavender and ink…absolutely perfect. I started sucking on her neck and as I went further south she stopped my head. Her breathe was quick and her face was flushed. Her voice was out of breathe when she spoke.

“Not that I'm complaining, but isn't this a little…random Clark? I mean, shouldn’t we be trying to figure out what’s going on with Lois?”

I started kissing her again and in between kisses I spoke.

“Forget Lois….I have.”

She stopped me again and looked into my eyes. Her voice was hesitant.

“Is this for real, Clark?”

I smirked. It was gonna be for real if she could just shut up long enough for me to..

“Oh, yeah, this couldn't be more real.”

God she was perfect. I could feel her body under me and I couldn’t wait to see all of it. I was done waiting…

(Chloe POV)

Clark was kissing me an I felt so good…but something was off. He’s never this forward not that I mind it’s just not him. I could feel his hand traveling up and I stopped it. I felt him sigh against me. When he spoke I could hear he was trying to control his voice.

“What now Chloe?”

I didn’t know what to say…

“Clark I just…we’ve never…can’t we just take this slow?”

He kissed me again and then looked down on me.

“We’ve been taking this slow for five years. It’s time to speed things up..”

“But..”

He cut me off abruptly.

“But what? Do you want me?…Answer me..”

“I.. yes. You know I do. It’s just maybe now isn’t the right time. Maybe we should wait until I have the baby…that way it’s not weird or anything…”

I saw his face soften but the dark look was still in his eyes.

“Your gorgeous Chloe…I’ve never wanted someone more…you drive me crazy…I need you.”

Oh god…how do you say no to that? But the things he was doing they just weren’t him…how I was thinking clearly I’ll never know…but I know Clark and if I said I wanted to wait he wouldn’t push…

“Clark….Clark…STOP.”

And he did. He lifted himself up and stood there looking at me. Then his voice broke the silence. His tone was calculated and he paced he room.

“What do you need?”

I was so confused.

“Huh?”

He stopped pacing and face me.

“What do you need to know I’m serious…about you about us…our relationship…”

I didn’t know what to say. He came over by the bed and titled his head to the side.

“I don’t know…I mean..”

He cut me off and A sly grin made it’s way to his face as he spoke.

“Pack a bag Chloe…”

He stood up and started throwing some clothes in a bag. I furrowed my brows in confusion.

“Clark what’s going on?”

He started putting my stuff in a bag and I grabbed his arm. He faced me with a raised eyebrow. I asked him again.

“What is going on?”

His eyes glinted and sparkled in the dark light. His lips curled up into a feral smile.

“Feel like getting married Chloe?”

I started at him like he had six heads…he couldn’t be serious. He chuckled.

“Good to know I can still make you speechless. Here take your bag. We have to make a stop at Lois’s before we go.”

He was walking toward the door but I hadn’t moved from my spot. I was shocked. He turned and walked back over to me. I glanced at him.

“Are you high?”

He smiled and answered.

“On life.”

“Clark we can’t get married.”

He frowned.

“Say’s who? I love you…you love me…we can do whatever we want Chloe…and for Valentine’s Day I want you to be my wife.”

What if he was serious? He sounded serious…was I really going to run off with Clark and get married? Maybe when we stopped at Lois’s I could talk him out of this because it didn’t look like that was going to happen right this second.

He snapped me out of my thoughts by grabbing me kissing me hard and taking off in super speed to the Talon. When we got there Lois was out. I felt a little queasy from the quick run so I leaned against the wall as I watched Clark frantically search for something. A few minutes later he walked out of her room and back to me holding a small tube in his hand with a large grin on his face. I raised a brow.

“Lipstick? Is there something you’re not telling me Clark?”

He shook his head and came closer to me. He handed it to me and I took it.

“Something borrowed…I already have your something blue.”

He waggled his eyebrows and I rolled my eyes. He nudged my hand.

“Put it on Chloe I want to see how it looks on you.”

I stared at him. Something was so wrong with him…but on the bright side if we were here talking then that meant he wasn’t dragging me off to get married. So I opened the lipstick and looked at it. The red hue was amazing and it looked like it was glistening in every direction.

I lifted it to my lips and gently put it on. I blotted my lips and looked up at Clark. He was grinning and my own grin soon joined his. He kissed me and I kissed him back just as hard. He leaned his head against mine and I giggled.

“We got everything we need to get this show on the road?”

I nodded.

“Oh yea…let’s go get hitched Mr. Kent…and make it snappy!”

I heard a deep chuckle from him as he lifted me in his arms and we were gone…I was on my way to become Mrs. Kent…and there wasn’t a thing anyone could do to stop it…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  06 Dec 2007 01:33
Crimson - Part B

Quote:


Chapter 9 Part B

(Clark POV)

The last time I did this…well let’s just say things didn’t go as planned. I wasn’t going to let that happen a second time around. I ran us all the way to the local courthouse. When we stopped and I put Chloe down she raised an eyebrow in my direction.

“Not exactly what I had in mind when you threw out the marriage card Clark.”

I chuckled. This was only our first stop. 

“Don’t worry…this is just the first stop…and I’m leaving you here.”

She glared at me and I smirked.

“You need to go in there and get a marriage license and by the time you get out I’ll have done what I need to do and already be here waiting.”

She smiled and kissed me hard. I can’t wait for the honey moon…Chloe is one feisty female in everyday life…Mmm I bet she’s a bobcat it bed…I took off and ran around town at super speed. I got Chloe a dress, I ran home, got my tux and booked a suite at one of the nicest hotels in Metropolis…I’d worry about getting Oliver to pay for it later…what’s important is getting Chloe there. I was standing outside the courthouse dressed and waiting seven minutes later. It took me a while to actually find the tux…Chloe came out a couple minutes after that and when her eyes landed on me she laughed.

“Well don’t you look adorable in your penguin suite.”

I glared at her and yanked her to me.

“Adorable isn’t exactly what I was going for…”

She gave me a sexy grin and leaned up to kiss my neck…

“Mmm okay, how about cute…or maybe hot….no I got it...sexy, it’s definitely sexy.”

I chuckled.

“Well then off to church we go…”

She held on to me and as I super sped away I could feel her planting small kisses on my chest. She was trying to kill me…her hot lips on me are seriously a new form of torture…and I’m sadistic enough to love every second of it. We sped to the church and when we got there she changed. When I laid eyes on her again…she took my breathe away…I don’t care what anyone says…pregnant females are extremely gorgeous…or at least Chloe was…  I laughed at the thought of pushing her in a confessional and taking her right there.

I found the minister and rushed him over to the alter. He was looking back and forth between us and wasn’t saying anything. I rolled my eyes.

“Come on pops we don’t have all day…we have a honey moon to start so if you’d please….”

I trailed off and Chloe laughed at the look on the minister’s face. As he started speaking I tuned him out and glanced over at Chloe…after this I could take her and we could go anywhere we wanted. We didn’t have to be stuck here in this boring old farm town. We could go visit Oliver in Star City…then we could travel the world...With Chloe by my side I could do anything. Yea, I mean the baby might put a cramp in things but that’s what they have babysitters for right?

I tuned back in when I heard the minister was no longer talking to Chloe but addressing me.

“Do you Clark Kent take Chloe Sullivan to be your wife – to live together after God’s ordinance – in the holy estate of matrimony? Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for better, for worse, in sadness and in joy, to cherish and continually bestow upon her your heart’s deepest devotion, forsaking all others, keep yourself only unto her as long as you both shall live?”

I grinned.

“Hell yea!”

This minister looked at us and it was quiet…Chloe faced him and gave him an inquisitive look. He shook his head.

“I’m sorry…do you have the rings?”

Crap…I knew there was something I forget. Not a problem…I’d go get ‘em now. I super sped to the town Jewelry store and swiped three rings then was back in the church in no time. The minister looked and me and I smiled.

“Yea I got ‘em.”

I handed them over to him and he held them high. Seriously this was taking really long…I just wanted to get back to the hotel already. His voice was clear and loud even though we were about two feet from him.

“May these rings be blessed as the symbol of this affectionate unity. These two lives are now joined in one unbroken circle. Wherever they go – may they always return to one another. May these two find in each other the love for which all men and women yearn. May they grow in understanding and in compassion. May the home, which they establish together, be such a place that many will find there a friend. May these rings on their fingers symbolize the touch of the spirit of love in their hearts.”

He handed two rings back to me and one to Chloe. He told me to repeat after him. I looked deep into Chloe’s eyes as I spoke. My gaze was dark and I could feel so many things bubbling inside of me possession being the most dominant. Chloe was mine…

“Chloe Sullivan, you are now consecrated to me as my wife from this day forward and I give you this ring as the pledge of my love and as the symbol of our unity and with this ring, I thee wed.”

She held out her hand and I slid on the band then the engagement ring and her eyes went wide but she didn’t say anything.

She repeated after the minister, same words as mine and when I held out my head she repeated the action with the ring. When we finished the minister made the sign of the cross or something and spoke what I prayed were his last words because I really couldn’t take much more of this…

“May you always share with each other the gifts of love – be one in heart and in mind – may you always create a home together that puts in your hearts – love – generosity and kindness.

In as much as Clark Kent and Chloe Sullivan have consented together in marriage before this…before me and have pledged their faith – and declared their unity by giving and receiving a ring – are now joined. You have pronounced yourselves husband and wife but remember to always be each other’s best friend.

What – therefore – God has joined together – let no man put asunder. And so, by the power vested in me by the State of Kansas and Almighty God, I now pronounce you man and wife – and may your days be good and long upon the earth. You may now kiss the bride.”

Ah, now we come to the best part of the ceremony… I moved in and Chloe put her arms around my neck. I moved my head down and met hers. The kiss was electric…it felt like something was flowing through my body and I didn’t want to let go.

After a couple of minutes I heard someone clearing their throat and Chloe giggled. I smiled and saluted the minister picked Chloe up in my arms and super sped away…We checked into the hotel as Mr. And Mrs. Kent and went straight up into the room. I carried her over the threshold and moved straight to the bed. I tossed her lightly on it and she bounced for a minute before her body settled. She was laying there leaning on her elbows with one hand on her stomach…

The last thought I had before getting on the bed and covering her body with mine was I couldn’t remember ever seeing anything I wanted more…things are about to get very interesting…

(Lana POV)

Today was my engagement party. I smiled…everything was set and it was shaping up to be a great day. I walked through the halls of the mansion and there were people bustling all around getting things ready for tonight…that’s what they should be doing. I want everything perfect. I felt someone grab me from behind and I jumped until I heard Lex's voice. I grinned. He’s so playful sometimes and I absolutely love that part of him…I’m the only person who gets to see it.

“I have a surprise for you.”

I shook my head but the smile didn’t leave my face as he led me over to a door not far from our room.

“I thought we said no gifts for the engagement dinner.”

His smile was warm and he inclined his head to look at me.

“It's not exactly for the dinner.”

He opened the double doors and I stared at the room in shock. He walked in and grinned at me. The whole room was set up in blues and whites. We just found out we’re having boy I didn’t even have a chance to tell Chloe yet…and this…it was just amazing. It must have taken him all night to do. I glanced at him and he was standing behind the crib. Holding up two different blankets.

“So, I have this dilemma. I can't decide between... Stegosaurus or Mr. Duck.”

I had tears in my eyes when I spoke to him. This was the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. Lex is going to be a good dad…nothing like his father. My breath hitched and I had to steady my voice.

“Lex…this is…it’s all so perfect…when did you get a chance to do all this? God you must have had so many people helping you to get it done so soon.”

He put the blankets down and shook his head. He walked over to me and wrapped me in his arms.

“I did it myself. I’ve been working on it for the past two nights while you were asleep. I want our son to have something that was made by me…not something that was put together by other people and paid for with money…but something put together with…love. I know it's kind of early, but the doctor said you two are perfectly healthy.”

I shook my head and waved him off.

“This is the sweetest thing you’ve ever done…and I’m so glad you wanted to do this for him…god…I love you…so much Lex…I just…I can’t even explain how much this means…”

My voice broke off and I could feel the tears sliding down my cheeks. Wonderful now I look like a blubbering whale. Lex looked confused.

“Lana..I…don’t cry…I’m sorry…I thought you…liked it..”

He sounded so uncertain and it made me laugh.

“Lex…I love it…these are happy tears.”

His expression calmed down and he smiled.

“Why don’t you go relax. I booked an appointment at a Spa in Metropolis for you so you can have a few hours rest before tonight. The limo should be here in about an hour. Why don’t you get ready and I’ll make sure everything else for tonight is taken care of. I beamed up at him.

“You treat me too well…”

I gave him a kiss and walked out of the room to go get ready. I can’t wait to become Mrs. Luthor…

(Lex POV)

As Lana walked out I looked over the room. I had to give the delivery guys credit. They were quiet when they came last night…originally I had planned to do everything myself but last night in the midst of finishing up the room I got a phone call from Dr. Rhinehouse about Chloe. it couldn’t wait so I gave the delivery guys extra money to put everything together and place it where I wanted it…Lana didn’t need to know all that though.

I walked out of the room and made sure everyone was doing what they were supposed to be doing. Lana wanted tonight perfect and she’d get it perfect. I walked into my study and sat at the desk. I opened up my computer, typed in the password and brought up the video feed that I’ve been watching to keep track of how things were going with my star patient…I grinned.

Tonight was going to be the first test…Chloe is going to be coming here for the dinner and after she leaves and goes home to the Kent farm…let’s just say tonight was going to be a big bang…pardon the pun. Phase one will be completed tonight and if she survives which I expect she will…then we’ll move onto phase two…

(Chloe POV)

Clark started moving up the bed towards me and I laughed.

“God Clark…My head is swimming.”

He grinned.

“Don't drown just yet.”

I moved back so I was leaning against the large head bored.

“Oh, my god, I can't believe I'm Mrs. Clark Kent!”

I saw his grin turn sly as he crawled over to me.

”Let's make it official.”

And he pounced. I chuckled and then moaned out my words as he sucked on my neck.

“Oh, God. I love you so much.”

I felt his teeth scrape against my skin…

“I know how you feel.”

I stopped him.

“Wait.”

He shook his head and his eyes got darker.

“We don't have to wait. We're married.”

And with that he covered my mouth with his and all coherent thoughts were gone from my mind. Oh god if Clark did other things the way he kissed…I was sure in for a long hot night…

(Lois POV)

I closed my phone for the third time today. Where the hell was Chloe? I’ve been calling her all day…she stole Clark and the two of them ran away to parts unknown. I was walking out of The Daily Planet when I bumped into Lana. She did a double take when she saw me. Her face was scrunched up in confusion.

“Lois?”

“The one and only..”

She raised a brow and I sighed.

“What are you doing?”

I frowned.

“Looking for where Clark disappeared to…I tried calling Chloe a million times but no one is answering…she’s trying to keep him away from me Lana…Humph…Tramp.”

I saw Lana’s eyes go wide and she was looking at me strange.

“Lois…is everything ok?”

I glared at her.

“Why wouldn’t it be? I mean the man I love left me high and dry after a pretty intense kiss and ran off to go find my cousin…I’m perfect…stupid flannel wearing farm boy..”

“Farm boy….are you talking about Clark, Lois?”

“Who else where’s flannel like it’s going out of style?”

She frowned and placed a hand on my arm.

“Hey Lo’…why don’t you come back to Smallville with me and I can help you figure out where Clark went…”

I grinned. I really did like Lana…she was nothing like Chloe…she’s gonna help me find my Clarkie!

So off to Smallville we went. During the Limo ride back she asked me about my night last night so I told her all about it. I told her about being upset she dragged me their, about the women at the booth and the gorgeous new lipstick that she gave me to help me find love…now if I could only remember where I put it…

We got to the mansion about two hours later. When we got inside Lana told me to just go hang out in the library cause she had to talk to Lex real quick. I shrugged and walked away…of course I didn’t know where the library was so I’d just snoop around….I mean come on…she’s leaving me alone in this huge place…she’s practically asking me to…

(Lana POV)

I left Lois alone figuring I’d have some time because she’d be snooping around. No worries I left her in a wing of the house that had practically nothing in it. I walked to the study and opened the doors. Lex looked up and he seemed startled.

“Your back sooner than I expected…what’s going on? Is everything alright?”

I shook my head.

“Not exactly…Lois is…something’s wrong with her I think she’s on something.”

He gave me a blank look and then raised an eyebrow.

“Ok…”

I sighed and moved to sit in one of the chairs across from him.

“I think it has to do with the oil essence lady who was booked for last night’s Valentines Day Bash at the Talon…”

Lex sighed and moved his chair.

“So what is it that you need me to do?”

I smiled. My man to the rescue…

“I need you to find out who she was and go to her shop. Ask her what she gave Lois and get some kind of a cure for it….”

He looked amused. He walked around the desk and put his arms around me.

“Did you just…give me orders?”

I grinned.

“I might have…what are you going to do about it?”

He chuckled.

“Absolutely nothing…I thought it was hot…”

He leaned over and kissed me. I smiled into the kiss and after a couple of seconds I broke it off.

“Ok then go now please…She needs to be fixed before tonight Lex…I can’t have her running around our engagement party the way she is…not only would it ruin the night but…it would reflect bad on us…”

I saw him trying to keep from laughing and he smiled.

“Just this once I’ll indulge you…I’ll make some call’s and be back soon.”

He kissed me, grabbed his phone and walked out of the study. Phew…that went well…I wasn’t exactly sure he was going to help…he’s not crazy about Lois though he likes her more than Chloe or Clark at the moment.

(Lex POV)

She dictated orders to me…not only did she burst in the study but she practically kicked me out of my own mansion….and I wasn’t even mad…I was laughing. This is why Lana Lang was going to be my wife in a few weeks…Not just because she was beautiful, or because she’s an amazing person, but because she had no problem standing up to me and I liked that. It was damn sexy! Plus if I was going to spend the rest of my life with one person I needed it to be someone who wouldn’t hold me back from the greatness I will achieve but someone who would help me succeed at it…and that was Lana.

I made a few phone calls and found out where the women was located. When I got there I walked into the store and glanced around. Wonderful… I brushed my jacket off a bit when something fell on me after walking in. I heard a serene voice speak to me from my left and I turned to face her.

“Looking for a little inspiration?”

I raised and eyebrow…do people really fall for that?

“No. Thank you. I've already got my muse.”

I walked around for a moment and picked something up. I turned and spoke to her in a condescending voice.

“So, is this supposed to simulate... bliss?”

She looked offended and came over to me. She took it out of my hand and placed on it back on the shelf.

“Not "supposed to." It does.”

I gave her a look of disbelief…she didn’t really believe this did she?

“Well…that seems sort of false don’t you think? Oh. A person is on the rebound and all they have to do is grab a bottle of your elixir and presto…there happy with someone else…if that were the case I’d think you’d be a lot richer.”

She glared at me.

“Indigenous cultures have used herbal oils for centuries. We've strayed so far from nature, we think we're above it.”

I tried not to roll my eyes at her.

“Ah,…I see..”

I waved it off and got to the point. I really didn’t want to stay here all day. I had more important things to do.

“Anyway…I did come here for a purpose. My fiancé believes you dosed her friend with some kind of love elixir last night.”

She grinned at me and I saw a gleam in her eyes.

“Tall, loud, down on love?”

Amazing how this woman zoned in on Lois to a T. See I told Lana I wasn’t the only person who thought Lois was extremely boisterous. I nodded.

“That would be Lois. So, how much is it going to cost me to get the antidote to the love elixir that you bestowed upon her? Something that will clear the cobwebs out.”

She walked over to a large case on the wall and I followed behind her. She opened it and there sitting on the shelf was a glass vile filled with glowing green liquid. She makes her elixirs with Meteor rock…no wonder they have such a powerful kick…interesting… she handed me the bottle and spoke lightly.

“This will counteract the aphrodisiac.”

I turned it over in my hand and looked up at her.

“Mind if I inquire as to what is used to make this?”

She shrugged.

“Different herbs, some extract from essential oils and liquefied green Meteor rock.”

I nodded.

“And what about the elixir you gave Lois?”

She chuckled.

“It wasn’t elixir…it was a tube of lipstick infused with red Meteor rock…”

Red Meteor rock…well isn’t that interesting. I took a card from my jacket and held it out to her. She raised an eyebrow but took it.

“What is this?”

“My card…if you ever feel like experimenting with Meteor rocks on a full-time basis call my office. I’d love to set up an area where we can see what kind of potions you can make.”

She didn’t charge for the spray so I left and headed back to the mansion. Hopefully everything was on schedule…I still needed to check in with Dr. Rhinehouse and our engagement dinner was in two hours…


(Clark POV)

I glanced over to my left and Chloe was fast asleep. I grinned. I guess I wore her out. I was restless and I wanted to do something. I got out of bed and started going through her bag looking for something to occupy my time with. As I sifted through the bag I came across an envelope. I pulled it out and smirked. I knew exactly what Chloe and I could do. I through on my boxers and moved over to the bed.

I was getting tired of waiting for Chloe to wake up…so I decided to take matters into my own hands. I moved up and started kissing her and she swatted me away. I grinned.

“Get up Chloe…no time for sleeping we have things to do and people to see.”

She groaned and rolled onto her back so she could look at me. When her eyes opened she smirked and glanced down.

“You have clothes on…how is that fun? If you aren’t disturbing my sleep for sex I couldn’t even imagine what could be so important that it couldn’t wait.”

I love this woman. I held up the invitation to Lex and Lana’s engagement party and smirked.

“Feel like crashing a party Mrs. Kent?”

I saw her face change from irritation to mischievous in a matter of seconds. Her smile was sweet.

“Why Clark…we wouldn’t be crashing…I was invited…we better get dressed before we’re late.”

She stood up with a sheet around her and headed to the shower…I should shower too…she might need help reaching her back… I heard her call out to me in amusement.

“You coming Clark?”

I grinned and I followed her into the bathroom slamming the door behind me…


(Lana POV)

I looked at my watch for the about the fifteenth time. Where was Lex? Lois was talking about Clark nonstop and it was driving me crazy! I swear if she says one more word about him I am going to be forced to lock her in the closet and not let her out until Lex got here to deal with her. I heard her yelling at me and looked over at her.

“Are you even listening to me Lana? God…you’re just as bad as that boyfriend stealer Chloe.”

Oh please no more….haven’t I been punished enough? Just then the door opened and Lex walked in. I rushed over to him and threw my arms around him.

“Thank god your back!”

He looked at me with a worried look in his eyes.

“Everything ok?”

I gave him a small smile.

“If you’d been any later you would have found Lois’s body in the corner….cause of death…blunt trauma to the head..”

He chuckled and kissed my forehead.

“Well if it makes you feel any better I would have gotten rid of the body for you.”

I laughed.

“Well aren’t you a peach…did you get it?”

He held up a glowing green bottle.

“Is the Meteor rock?”

He nodded.

“Guess what was some of the main ingredients in making her little potions work….She said all you need to do is get some of this to make contact with her skin.”

I nodded and he handed the bottle to me. I told him I’d take care of it and he left to go get ready for tonight. I walked cautiously over to Lois and she turned.

“What?”

“Nothing, oh god Lois…what did you spill on your shirt? That’s awful looking.”

As she looked down I readied the bottle and when she looked up confused I sprayed it right in her face. She stumbled back a bit and looked around. She raised an eyebrow at me.

“Uh…this is awkward…”

She looked down and saw what she was wearing. She glanced back up at me and gave me a half smile.

“Tell me I didn’t go out like this…”

I smiled. Thank god she’s back.

“You did but apparently it wasn’t your fault. Why don’t you come with me to get ready for the dinner…you can change into something more appropriate and I’ll explain everything.”

She nodded. We went to get ready…an hour and a half till diner….it’s going to be a long night…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  06 Dec 2007 01:50
Crimson - Part C

Quote:


Chapter 9 Part C

(Lana POV)

There was a small group of friends and family minus one Maid of Honor sitting around the long table for our engagement party. I heard Lex tap his glass as he stood up. We all looked up at him.

“Could I have everyone's attention, please?”

Everyone quieted down and I smiled. I love how he could command a room…Lex was a natural born leader. He smiled around the table to everyone.

“I just wanted to thank you all for joining us to celebrate. Over the years, I'm sure some of you have placed a few bets on whether I'd settle down. But this couldn't be further from settling. I'd like to toast my beautiful fiancée for making me happier than I thought I could ever be.”

Tears pooled in my eyes and our eyes met as he finished his toast. Just then I heard the doors burst open and I saw Clark and Chloe strut in the room. They looked different. Clark was wearing black jeans and a black leather jacket…his demeanor looked harder. He smirked and his voice was loud.

“Looks like we missed dinner.”

I glanced toward Lex and his facial expression darkened. This is not happening…what is going on with Clark…I swear…and what is Chloe doing? Lex’s voice was stern.

“Clark, what are you doing here?”

He smirked and let Chloe’s hand go as he circled around the table looking at everyone he knew who was seated there. His voice was sarcastic and leaked resentment when he spoke.

“Come on, Lex. You didn't think I was gonna miss this, did you? And look. My own mother would rather raise a glass with the enemy than stand by her own son.”

I looked at Mrs. Kent and she was taking Clark in with worry on her face. Her voice was soft when she spoke.

“Clark, you're not yourself.”

He snorted and gave her a condescending look.

“It's okay, Mom. You're more a Luthor than a Kent these days anyway. I mean, Dad's been, what, dead a year? But who can blame you for joining the race with Lana to see who's gonna add the Luthor monogram to their name first?”

I looked up angrily at Clark. Who the hell did he think he was that he could come in here and ruin mine and Lex’s engagement dinner? His Jekyll and Hyde routine was really starting to piss me off.

I could see Mrs. Kent struggling to keep her composure just like I was. She looked over at me and gave me a look of apology. She had no clue what was going on either. Lex started to move towards Clark but I took a deep breath and spoke to him.

“Lex, he's obviously on something, and he wants us to react. Please don't.”

He stopped himself and I could see him attempting to control his darker urges. I was almost at the point where I didn’t care if Lex tried to hurt Clark…I couldn’t believe he could do this…and Chloe…she was just standing there smirking at what Clark was saying…How could she be so cold…I’m her best friend and Martha is like a mother to her.

Clark looked over to Chloe and she smiled at him he grinned and faced us again.

“It’s good to know at least someone is loyal to me. I know Chloe doesn’t have any Luthor’s on the brain…not after what we spent all afternoon doing…”

She chuckled.

“Clark Kent! That’s private these good people don’t want to here about our sex lives…I mean jeez most of them probably don’t have sex….although with Lana being pregnant we know her and Lex do.”

Several people at the table gasped. I closed my eyes. The only people who know about the baby were Chloe, Clark, Lois and Mrs. Kent….we weren’t telling people yet. I was in the beginning of my fourth month and I just started to show so if I wore the right thing’s you couldn’t really tell. I guess that didn’t really matter anymore though huh?

Clark faced me and laughed. His voice came out carefree…like he didn’t give a damn about what he was saying to me.

“And you. You know, I got to hand it to you. If you were gonna rebound, why not choose the one person that I hated the most? But, I mean, come on, Lana. The joke's over by now, isn't it?”

Lex obviously couldn’t let that one go because he raised his voice at Clark and I saw his fists white from him holding back.

“Clark, I think you've done enough damage. Why don't you take your whore with you and leave?”

I shook my head and glanced in Clark’s direction…it almost looked like his eyes glowed red for a second. He moved toward Lex. He screamed at Lex not even trying to hide his anger.

“I am not done yet! And Lex….I don’t care who is around if you EVER speak about my wife like that again…I won’t be held accountable for what I do to you…and if you don’t think I can do anything…I’m begging you to try me.”

When I heard him say wife I think his mother and I gasped at the same time. The only difference was I said something to him about it. My voice was loud enough to be heard but I wasn’t yelling.

“Wife?”

Chloe turned to me and smirked.

“Yes wife….you have something you want to say about it Lana? Or maybe now that Clark and I are married you’ll want to run off and elope with Lex…how is it no matter what we’re doing we are always in competition with each other?”

I looked down to get myself together and then looked back up a mask of indifference firmly on my face.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Chloe…”

She nodded. Her voice came out impressed but I know she was just mocking me.

“Wow Lana…living with a Luthor has made you real good at the deny it all even when proven guilty tactic. It’s probably that baby inside of you…polluting you with his DNA..”

I cut her off. That was enough…She could say anything about me but she needed to leave my son out of it. I stood up and my face contorted into a sneer.

“How dare you! How dare you say anything about my son! At least my baby will be normal…Can you say the same about yours?”

I saw her raise an eyebrow and it was my turn to smirk. My body was moving closer to her of it’s own accord. My voice was ice cold.

“That’s right Chloe I know about your Meteor freak status…You and Clark think I’m so naïve…that Lex doesn’t share thing’s with me…you’re wrong! So instead of attacking my son how about you worry about yours because for all you know he could come out with your eyes and a Meteor ability to go along with them…do you even know what’s wrong with you? What you are?”

I guess I was getting to close to her because Clark too a step forward and his voice was cold.

“That’s close enough…Lana.”

I looked up at him and as I looked in his eyes I couldn’t even recognize who he was. I felt a hand on the small of my back and I looked over into Lex’s face. I could tell he was furious. I moved into his body. He and Clark stared at each other for what felt like hours while Chloe and I stood by our respective men neither of us giving in. Chloe finally broke the silence and her voice was in no way friendly.

“If you really want to know what’s wrong with me…why don’t you ask your fiancé…he knows…I mean he kidnapped me and spent the night probing and prodding me…I bet he didn’t share the intimate details of that…did he?”

I glared at her.

“Lex wouldn’t do that….”

I grasped his hand and squeezed it.

“And you know what….to be quite honest with you if he did do that to Meteor freaks…so he could learn about them and their weaknesses…I wouldn’t care. To hell with every last one of them. If it comes down to my family or them…I choose us…my loyalties lie with Lex…and nobody else.”

I saw Clark’s brows move in together and his voice was low and hard.

“Then you’ve made your choice Lana…”

Chloe tried to cut him off and he shook his head and waved her off.

“No Chloe…Lana has made her choice she wants to stand by Lex and her family….”

He looked at Lex and his voice held amusement as he spoke.

“I wonder what’s going to happen Lex, when Lana realizes that you’ve been lying to her all along…do you think she’ll take it well? I mean she’s obviously turning into a backstabber like you so…”

It happened so quick that I wasn’t sure if I was seeing things or not. Lex jumped out and punched Clark right in the face. Clark’s head whipped around but there was nothing on his face when he brought it back around except for a grin.

“I was so hoping you would do that.”

He hit him back and Lex went flying. I went to run after him but Clark pushed me out of the way and I stumbled into a chair. Lois caught my arm so I wouldn’t fall and I gave her a look of appreciation. Everyone was clearing out of the room and the only people who were left were me, Lex, Clark, Chloe, Lois and Mrs. Kent. Everyone was trying to stop the fighting except Chloe. She just stood there laughing…cheering Clark on…I looked around the mess of the room and closed my eyes….I wish this was just all stop….I wish it would all go away…this isn’t how it’s supposed to be…

(Martha POV)

It’s obvious Clark wasn’t himself and I hadn’t the faintest idea what was wrong with Chloe…She would never in her right mind let Clark act like this…I needed to find a Meteor rock before Clark did something he was going to regret….I’m pretty sure I have one in the car….I keep it there so it’s in reach but away from Clark.

I ran to the car and searched around for a bit before finding it… When I got back inside Lois was trying to pull Clark off Lex and Lana was practically in tears. She looked at me and shook her head.

“What’s wrong with him? Why is he doing this…why is Chloe just standing there?”

I sighed I felt so bad for her…

“I don’t know Lana…Chloe…she seems to be on something she isn’t herself….you know how much she dislikes Lex but she’d never condone this kind of behavior from Clark….you know that.”

Suddenly Lana’s face lit up with recognition.

“It’s the lipstick.”

I was confused.

“What?”

She nodded and ran over to the table. She pulled a bottle out of her purse that looked a lot like liquid kryptonite.

“What is that?”

“Last night at the Talon some lady who was running an herb booth or something gave Lois lipstick that was infused with red Meteor rocks…it was like a love potion or something…it made Lois completely different…she was going on and on about Clark…look at Chloe’s lips Mrs. Kent…there red! All we have to do is spray this on her and she’ll go back to normal…”


I nodded. Red kryptonite…that definitely explained Clark’s behavior. We snuck up by Chloe and when Lana called her and she turned I sprayed the serum in her face. As soon as it hit her skin her face went blank and then she shook her head. She looked at us and her face was confused.

“What’s going on? How’d I get here?”

Lana looked relieved and I gave her a small smile. She heard the commotion behind her and turned. I saw horror register on her face and she moved closer to Lex and Clark. Lana and I followed close behind…Her voice was shrill.

“CLARK!”

He stopped and turned and Lex knocked him down. He stood up glared at him and picked him up by his neck and held him against the wall. It was time to use the kryptonite as much as I didn’t want to. I got closer and it started to glow in my hand…I saw Clark stumble and then fall to the ground.

Lana moved by Lex helped him up and he held her. I turned to say something and saw Chloe hit the floor clutching her stomach. I was confused. I spoke softly as I went by Chloe, which only seemed to make her writhing worse.

“Lex…Lana…I am so sorry about this I don’t know…Lana said Chloe was infected by some kind of red Meteor rock lipstick…her and Clark were probably kissing and it infected him too…I’m so sorry…If you can have someone help me hoist Clark in the car I’ll get them out of your hair.”

Lex didn’t look happy but he nodded. He had two people drag Clark to the car while I stood near by. I helped Chloe to the car but she kept pushing me away and trying to move as far from me as possible. Everyone got was in the car and I drove off…the two of them were pale and breathing heavy…Clark spoke..

“Mom…throw…out…Meteor….please…mom…”

I wanted to cry but I had to let it go a few more minutes. The only way to get rid of the red Meteor rock inside him was for him to sweat it out. Halfway home I through it out the window and both Clark and Chloe looked immediately better. If I didn’t know better I’d say Chloe just had the same reaction to Meteor rocks that Clark did…but that was impossible….Chloe wasn’t Kryptonian Meteor rocks didn’t make her sick.

We got home and Clark was well enough to help Chloe upstairs…I didn’t bother them now but we would be talking about this in the morning….sometimes having a son from another planet had it’s advantages and other times…it was just a handful…


(Chloe POV)

I woke up and my head it. It felt like I went on a drinking binge yesterday, which I know didn’t happen because hello….pregnant. I moved and hit into Clark. He groaned and rolled over. I moved my hand over my face to scratch my nose. As I was moving it away I saw something shiny so I turned my hand. I shot up in bed and stared at my finger….No….that’s…not possible.. I yelled at Clark to wake him up.

“Clark! Get up…NOW!”

He sat up and looked around frantically.

“What? What’s going on Chloe?”

I showed him my finger and he just sat there.

“It’s not my fault.”

I glared.

“Ok it is my fault but only indirectly.”

“Tell me we aren’t married…”

“Well…um…should I lie?”

I gave a scream of frustration.

“I’m sorry Chloe….I was dosed with red kryptonite…I couldn’t help myself.”

I shook my head.

“What is it with you and wanting to get married when you’re on Red K?”

He shrugged and gave a small smile.

“I dunno but I’m getting better at it…this one was legal.”

He grinned but I didn’t smile back….

“Okay…your not seeing the humor in this…I understand that. Chloe I’m sorry for infecting you…god…this just….sucks…please don’t be mad…”

I was about to say something when we heard Clark’s mom call us downstairs. We looked at each other and he flinched. She didn’t sound happy. We got dressed and went downstairs…when we got down their breakfast was waiting for us and after we ate she explained everything that happened to us.

I couldn’t stop shaking my head. This really wasn’t good. Nothing was ever gonna be the same after everything that was said last night. Mrs. Kent cleared the plates then sat in front of us quietly for a few minutes. Before speaking.

“I'm upset. But more than that, I'm disappointed in the two of you.”

Clark spoke right away trying to defend himself and me but it was no use.

”I was on red kryptonite, mom and Chloe was dosed with that lipstick..”

”That’s no excuse...My god, you two ran off and got married! Didn’t you learn your lesson last time Clark?”

“Mrs. Kent we really didn’t mean to do this…I don’t even remember it.”

She nodded sadly at me and looked at Clark.

“You of all people know red kryptonite isn’t an excuse. It has never made you do thing’s you didn’t want to do…it just gets rid of your inhabitations…the two of you really have to start being honest with other people…that is part of the reason everything went to hell last night.”

Clark looked down.

“I’m sorry your mad mom but there are some things about yesterday…that I just can’t regret.”

Her voice was stern but not mean.

“That's not even the point Clark and you know it. Marriage is sacred. It's about two people who trust each other and are willing to go through life together, no matter how difficult it gets. I thought your father an I had taught you that.”

Clark looked back at her and frowned.

“Okay, so maybe I hadn’t planned for things to happen like this mom but what makes you think I’m not serious about this? I love Chloe…she’s having this baby and I plan to be there every step of the way. I trust Chloe with everything I have and I’m ready to go through life with her…we've already been through hard-times and i know we can get through more if we're together...if she wants me that is…”

He trailed off and I had tears in my eyes. I gave him a small smile but couldn’t speak at the moment because my voice was all choked up. I squeezed his hand under the table. His mom shook her head again.

“Clark…Chloe didn’t even have an honest choice in deciding to get married…Is that the way you want to start out your life together…either of you?”

She looked at me and sighed.

“You're an amazing young man, Clark. You make life and death decisions every day. But then you turn around and -- and you do this. I just don’t know what to say to the two of you….unfortunately though…this is not the most pressing matter at hand and so I’m going to leave it alone for the time being.”

I smiled at Clark and he grinned in my direction. Mrs. Kent looked back over at us and her expression was serious.

“Last night…when I took out the Meteor rock to stop you Clark…it had the same reaction on Chloe that it did on you.”

I frowned. I remembered that…I felt a sharp pain like I was getting sick and every time she came closer I could feel something eating away at me… Clark looked over at me worried and confused. His voice came out worried.

“How is that possible?”

She looked at us again.

“I don’t know but it’s something that the two of you need to work on finding out about…”

I nodded. Things were never normal with us but that was off the charts weird…and I was a little nervous…I felt Clark rubbing my hand to calm me and I leaned into him…Well who would have thought that on Valentines Days I’d be pregnant at twenty, with my ex boyfriends baby, feuding with the enemy while he’s engaged to my female best friend and married to my male best friend who is an alien from outer space…hmm…and I thought Smallville couldn’t get any weirder…Guess I was wrong huh...

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  06 Dec 2007 05:11
Next chapter - Part A

Quote:


Chapter 10 Part A

(Lana POV)

I was sitting at the vanity in mine and Lex’s room brushing my hair. I haven’t spoken to Chloe or Clark in about two weeks. Clark came by and apologized to Lex but I didn’t want to see him. According to Lex Chloe sent her apologies as well…apparently Clark didn’t want Lex anywhere near her. The two of them are ridiculous with there accusations when it comes to Lex…

I don’t really understand what happened…Chloe and I used to be so close and now…it’s like I don’t even know her. Even through everything though...I could really use her right now I’m angry with her but I miss her too
I felt a small flutter in my stomach and put my hand over it. I started to feel the baby moving about a week ago…It felt…indescribable…absolutely amazing.

I smiled and continued brushing my hair…I can’t believe Clark and Chloe are married…I mean I’m happy with Lex. I love him and we’re going to have a family, but I guess I just never thought that Clark would move on…let alone with Chloe…

My thoughts were cut short when my cell phone chimed. My brows drew together and I picked it up and opened it. There was a photo message for me but it wasn’t from a number I recognized. I opened it and gasped. It was a picture taken of me…right here now! I looked frantically around the room and then I opened the door and ran out straight into Lex. He saw the panic on my face and he frowned in concern.

“Lana, what's wrong?”

“There's someone in the room.”

Lex got his security team together and they swept through the room with their guns on the ready but found nothing.

I heard on of the men on the team speak.

“Clear.”

Then another as Lex stood by my side holding me tightly.

“It's all clear, sir.”

I glanced around the room and saw the window wide open…I didn’t leave that open.

“Lex, over there.”

I motioned to the open window and Lex went over to the window and searched outside of it but didn’t find anything.

He turned to the security team and his voice was hard and commanding.

“Check the roof and initiate a full perimeter sweep of the grounds.”

“Right. Yes, sir.”

And they left the room to do as Lex asked. I was slightly shivering and Lex rubbed my arms and turned me towards him.

“Lana... what did this guy look like?”

I shook my head. That’s when I remembered the picture message. I was debating whether or not I should show it to Lex…I didn’t want to worry him….but I didn’t want to lie either because I don’t want him lying to me…

“I don't know. I didn't see him, but...”

I pulled out my cell phone and handed it to Lex.

“Whoever was here they took this…and sent it to me…that’s how I know s…someone was here…”

His eyes grew cold and his jaw tensed. I sighed and my voice was quiet when I spoke.

“C-could you close the window?”

He snapped out of whatever he was thinking and when he looked at me his face softened.

“Yeah.”

As he closed and locked the window I sat down on the bed. He turned back around and knelt in front of me.

“How long ago was this message sent to you?”

I shrugged.

“Not long before I came outside and you came in here…maybe a minute or two.”

He nodded. His voice was comforting when he spoke.

“You didn't actually see or hear anyone thought right?”

I shook my head.

“No”

“I’m going to keep your phone for now if that ok…I want to send it to my people…see if they can trace the number that sent you this picture.”

I gave him a weak smile and nodded. I knew when things got tough I could always count on Lex. He has always been there for me. He must have seen the anxious look on my face because he rubbed my arm gently and spoke in a calm voice.

“Hey…where gonna find this person Lana…and when we do…I’m going to personally teach them what happens to someone who messes with the people I care about.”

I leaned my forehead against his and took a deep breath.

“I love you…”

He smiled.

“I love you too. I'm going to go downstairs, and get you some tea to calm your nerves.”

I smiled.

“Thank you.”

He nodded kissed my head and placed his hand on my stomach for a second before he left the room. I don’t care how Lex is with other people…because with me he’s a good man. Clark and Chloe needed to stop trying to convince me that Lex was some kind of monster…because I’d die before I’d ever betray him…


(Clark POV)

I walked into The Daily Planet and I saw Chloe at her desk typing away on the computer. I smiled. Things have been a little strained between us the last couple of weeks. Ever since we kind of got married…which by the way according to Chloe is my fault… we have kind of been stepping on each other’s toes trying to settle into the reality of actually being married. Chloe’s way of dealing with it is to ignore it and pretend it didn’t happen. Me, I’ve been trying to integrate our lives together without changing the things we each love as individuals…but Chloe is always getting mad at me when I do that…

Then last night we finally sat down and had a little discussion about everything. We agreed that we’re going to try and make this marriage work…all the kinks are definitely not out of this relationship but we’re working on it and that’s the important part.

I walked over to her desk and stood there waiting for her to notice me. I glanced down and noticed the ring on her finger glittering while she typed. The ring was huge and I felt really bad about swiping it…but after returning everything else I took while we were on red K I just couldn’t bring myself to take the ring from Chloe. It looked right on her.

“Why are you staring at me Clark?”

I looked back up at her and she didn’t even take her eyes off the screen as she spoke to me. I smiled.

“I can’t admire my wife?”

She scrunched her nose and shook her head. Her hands stopped typing as she clicked print and she faced me.

“It’s so weird to hear you call me that…I mean you’re not just my boyfriend anymore…you’re my husband…”

I shrugged.

“You almost finished? We had lunch plans today, didn’t we?”

She shook her head no and I saw sadness over take her face.

“What’s wrong Chloe?”

She pointed to the calendar on her desk. Today’s date had a blue circle on it with a smiley face. I raised an eyebrow. She sighed.

“Lana is five months pregnant today…we had plans to go baby shopping together for the boys. It’s unlucky to get things before the fifth month…in case anything…you know goes wrong. So we were all excited about today and we planned it months in advance and now…Lana and I aren’t even speaking to one another…it’s just…I miss her Clark…I miss our friendship…Lois is great but Lana knows what’s I’m going through…how I’m feeling…and she just…she chose Lex over us Clark!”

By the end of Chloe’s little speech she had tears coursing down her cheeks. I sat down and pulled her to me. I said what I hoped were comforting words in her ear as I rubbed her back. Chloe’s been kind of an emotional wreck lately. My mom said it’s normal for pregnant women to be emotional but I wasn’t so sure.

The other night Chloe kicked me out of my own bed because I made a comment about how round her stomach was getting. I didn’t mean it offensively. I think it's cute...really. We were lying in bed and I had her shirt up over her stomach and I was talking to our son…he was moving around a lot and I said it looked like she had a small basketball inside her skin…Is that so bad? Well she apparently thought so because I slept on the couch and not in my bed.
A hard slap to the head knocked me out of my thoughts. I looked at Chloe confused and she looked pissed. Crap…

“Clark do you even listen to me when I talk to you?”

“Huh…”

I didn’t have a chance to finish because she cut me off.

“Of course not. I’m sitting here crying my eyes out because I miss my best friend and you’re sitting there ignoring me. Go home I don’t want to have lunch with you.”

If I was still alive by the time Chloe gave birth I actually might be a little surprised…with the way things were going I was afraid during one of her “emotional” times she was going to take a piece of kryptonite and beat me with it… All though that might be harder now that it affects her too. We still haven’t figured out why that is…not for a lack of trying though. I shook my head.

“Chloe I’m sorry I know how upset you are about Lana…why don’t you call her…see if maybe you guys can work things out. It can’t hurt to try right?”

She shrugged.

“I guess not but what would I say…By the way sorry I crashed your rehearsal dinner and announced your pregnancy to a room full of strangers…want to go shopping for baby clothes?”

I grinned. If she was making jokes it couldn’t be that bad. Besides I went and apologized to Lex…even though I would rather have impaled myself with kryptonite…We all do things we don’t want to do…

“That could be a start. Besides if I went and apologized to Lex you can apologize to Lana.”

“Yes but the difference is Clark you aren’t trying to be Lex’s friend…that ship has sailed. I still want Lana in my life…We still need to convince her Lex is the devil…I can only imagine what would happen if her son grew up with him. It would be like Dr. Evil and Mini Me…without the cuteness.”

I chuckled. I would say she’s highly caffeinated but she’s only had one cup…

“Well what’s the verdict? You going to call Lana…or are you letting me take you to lunch?”

She smiled at me.

“I think I’m gonna try to call Lana…you don’t mind do you?”

I shook my head.

“Not at all.”

She tilted her head to the side.

“I’m sorry you had to come all the way here…I appreciate it though.”

I smiled and leaned over to kiss her.

“It’s fine Chloe…it only took me a couple of seconds to get here. You do your thing and I’ll see you at home.”

I stood up and was about to walk away when Chloe pulled on my arm. I turned and she leaned up and kissed me. Her voice was soft and intimate when she spoke.

“I love you.”

“Love you too.”

And I took off. I went back to the farm and ran into Lois. She was in the kitchen helping herself to a glass of juice. I glanced in her direction and continued to the closet in the hallway as I spoke.

“Chloe isn’t here Lois…go home.”

I could here her snort from where I was pulling out a large box covered by a blanket. I brought it into the living room and Lois followed me.

“Please…not every time I come here is about seeing my wayward cousin. I was looking for your mom.”

I sat on the floor and pulled the blanket off the box. I was concentrating on getting it out while I spoke to Lois.

“She’s in Metropolis with Lionel…some kind of charity thing…I think she’ll be…”

Lois’s voice cut into my sentence. Her voice was soft.

“Is that…is that a crib?”

I looked up at her and the expression on her face was a mixture of surprise and awe. I smiled.

“Yeah…well kind of. It’s a bassinet or a rocker…what do you think? I mean it’s not finished yet I still have to add a few things here and sand it down…but this is pretty much how it’s gonna look. Lois…earth to Lois…”

Her head snapped from the crib to me.

“You made this?”

I nodded.

“Smallville…that’s really…you know…you’re not so bad of a guy and I think Chloe will really like it.”

My smile widened. I just got a compliment from Lois…I should buy a lottery ticket today! Just...think I’d win millions…

“Thanks Lois…listen I’m actually kind of glad you’re here.”

She rose and eyebrow at me and was about to say something but I spoke before she could.

“I need to talk to you about something.”

I wiped my hands on my jeans and stood up. I was pacing around the room and finally Lois got tired of it.

“Smallville you’re gonna burn a hole in the floor. Whatever it is it can’t be as bad as you running off and eloping with my baby cousin…”

I glared at her for a second before sitting across from her. I wasn’t really one to put my feelings out there…I was a private guy…and I definitely didn’t get all sentimental in front of Lois…but there was something I needed help with and in order to get it I had to such it up and ask Lois.

“I know that um…Okay listen…I know that you and I don’t really do the emotional stuff and that’s…good cause it would be kind of weird. That being said I need a favor. Now that Chloe and I are married…”

She glared at me but I ignored it.

“And she’s going to be having the baby in a few months…I figured that maybe you could help me redo my room. The farm isn’t small but it’s not equipped for more people either. I spoke to my mom and she told me I could combine my room and the spare room since there right next to each other.”

She didn’t say anything but she nodded so I knew she was at least listening. I continued.

“I was thinking I could connect the rooms that way we could be close to the baby…I like to think I know Chloe better than anyone…but when it comes to decorating and what Chloe likes in that department…I’m lost. But you’ve lived with her and you know what she likes. I’d really appreciate the help Lois…So…what do you think?”

Lois gave me an appraising look before rolling her eyes and standing up.

“Like you even had to ask Smallville jeez…you make it seem like I’m the big bad wolf…of course I’ll help it’s for Chloe and my nephew.”

She looked at her watch and sighed.

“I have to go I have a deadline and I’m not nearly done with my article. I’ve wasted too much of my time on you already. Tell you’re Mom I stopped by.”

And with that she left. I shook my head. She’s ridiculous…


(Chloe POV)

I called Lana and wound up leaving a message because no one answered. I shook my head. I really hoped Lana and I could work this out. I hate the way she’s been acting lately and things have been tense with us lately but I didn’t hate her. I looked at the clock and it was getting late.

I sighed I haven’t eaten lunch yet because Lana never answered and I was getting hungry. I’ll just go out and grab something myself…no big deal. I got up grabbed my purse and headed out the door banging straight into Lana. I looked up startled and she moved from foot to foot. We both stood there for a couple of minutes and when I finally couldn’t take it anymore I broke he silence.

“Lana…listen I know I already said this on your voicemail but I’m really sorry about ruining your dinner…I never meant for any of that stuff to happen.”

I shook my head.

“And I’m so sorry about telling everyone about the baby.”

She nodded and gave me a hesitant smile.

“The lipstick sure caused a lot of grief huh?”

I nodded and smiled back.

“It defiantly did.”

She was quiet and then her voice was careful when she spoke next.

“And Clark…it sure seemed to give him an unusual amount of strength…I don’t remember you or Lois being any stronger…it must affect males differently.”

I could tell she didn’t believe what she was saying by the way she spoke. I wasn’t going to correct her though I just smiled and nodded.

“I was actually just on my way to lunch…do you feel like…maybe coming along?”

She shrugged.

“I could eat…and it’ll give us time to talk…maybe work things out? I miss having you around Chloe…you’re the only other person going though what I’m going through…plus you’re my maid of honor and the wedding is in two weeks…”

I forced a laugh for her sake. Yeah Lana would be worried about her wedding to Lex…unfortunately it wasn’t the kind of worried she should be. We left The Daily Planet and went to lunch. While we were there we both acknowledged that we said some awful things and they couldn’t be taken back…but we could work through them and maybe our friendship would be stronger because of it.

I told her about what the doctor said at my last appointment and then Lana started telling me about the new happenings in her life. Apparently Lana has a new stalker in her life and Lex had his whole team of security on the case trying to figure out who this guy was…but with no luck as of yet. I sipped my juice as Lana told me what was going on.

“Lex was hoping to find out right away who it was because he needs to go away on business for a couple of days and he didn’t want to leave me alone while all this was going on…”

I nodded.

“Well of course not. When is he leaving?”

She sighed.

“Tonight.”

Hmmm. With everything going on we can’t just leave Lana and the baby to fend for herself.

“Why don’t you come stay at the farm with Clark and I while Lex is gone…I know it might be a little awkward but I’d never forgive myself if anything happened to you…what do you say?”

She looked like she was thinking about it and then I saw a smile appeared on her face.

“That’d be great Chloe…thanks. When I get back home I’ll tell Lex and I’m sure he’ll feel a lot better about going on his trip. Speaking of that I should probably get back to the mansion…I have some stuff to do and I want to spend some time with Lex before he goes.”

She started getting her stuff together and I was confused. That was weird…it was almost like she was waiting for me to invite her back to the farm…but why would she want me to do that when she and Clark aren’t really speaking right now. She smiled at me and I gave her a small smile back.

“I’m really glad we worked things out Chloe…I missed you…what time do you want me to come by tonight?”

Crap I had to talk to Clark about this…

“Umm I guess whenever Lex leaves just come by.”

She nodded and said bye and left. My head was spinning something was just not right with this and I’d figure it out eventually but right now I needed to get back to The Planet and hand in my article so I could go home and talk to Clark. I’d owe him big after this one…


(Lex POV)

Lana just told me she’d was going to be staying at the farm tonight…I can’t say I’m happy about it I don’t want Clark and Chloe polluting her mind against me…but she’d be safe and in the long run that’s all that mattered. Plus I’m sending half he security team with her so she’ll be fine… I looked at the clock and it was just about time for me to call Dr. Rhinehouse and give him the okay our first test. It was supposed to happen when Chloe left the engagement party but things didn’t exactly go as planned. I picked up my phone and dialed his number.

“Hello?”

“Hello doctor.”

“Mr. Luthor…everything is all set up I just need you to tell me when to put everything in motion.”

I grinned.

“Do it now.”

And I hung up. If all of these tests panned out I was going to become an icon in this world…Chloe doesn’t even realize the powers she carried inside her…and hopefully she never would…not until I learn how to harness it of course…my other favorite patient was helping me with that…well maybe helping was to strong of a word…but either way I was on my way to getting all the answers that I needed…things are about to get very interesting…


(Clark POV)

I had just finished up the crib as my Mom walked through the door. She looked over and smiled at me.

“Clark…it’s absolutely gorgeous. I’m sure Chloe’s going to love it.”

I smiled and picked it up to put it back in the closet.

“I hope so. I talked to Lois today she said she’d help.”

“That’s good. When is Chloe coming home do you know?”

I shrugged.

“Soon I think though…last time I talked to her she said she was gonna be home early because she had something to tell me.”

“Alright well I’m gonna head upstairs and change…I’ll make dinner when I come back down.”

“Thanks mom”

She nodded and went upstairs. I started putting away all the tools I was using and cleaning up for my mom. I heard a car coming down the road so I went over to the door and saw Chloe’s Yaris turning into the farm. As she pulled up I was standing on the porch smiling and she saw me and waved from inside the car. She shut the car off and I saw her getting her stuff together…As soon as she opened her car door I heard a loud bang and it knocked me back a few feet.

I landed right on my back. I shook my head and looked up and my whole body went slack. About twenty-five feet in front of me was Chloe’s Yaris in a mountain of flames. I picked myself up and as I was super speeding over to the car there was a second explosion and flames came off the car in waves the whole thing was burning to the ground.

As I got closer I saw parts of Chloe’s shirt singed on the ground. I could hear myself frantically screaming and my mom came running out yelling my name right as I ran into the roaring fire and disappeared in it…I didn’t care who saw…the only thing that mattered was Chloe….she was standing here right when the car blew up…I saw her body engulfed by flames….I heard her scream…I’d get to her and the baby…it can’t be too late…it just can’t…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  06 Dec 2007 05:25
Chapter 10 - Part B

Quote:


Chapter 10 Part B

(Clark POV)

It was quiet…we sat around the kitchen table in complete silence. I had my elbows on the table and my chin was resting on the peak of my hands. My clothes were burnt and the sleeves of my shirt were practically gone. My mother had some dust on her and her eyes were still wet from tears. The tears she cried what felt like hours ago but was probably only minutes. Silence had engulfed the room and neither of us knew what to say to break it…

“How did this happen…Clark…Clark talk to me…what is going on?”

Her voice was frantic and I closed my eyes. What was I supposed to say? I have no clue what happened…I keep going over it in my head and nothing makes sense. I remember running into the fire to look for Chloe and when I saw her she was batting the flames off her body screaming. I grabbed her and super sped away from the fire. Once we were in front of the house I was frantically trying to pat the fire out that was burning her shirt. It wasn’t until she stopped wriggling and calmed down that I realized there wasn’t a scratch on her. Not one burn. Her skin was a bit pink but nothing more.

There were tears on Chloe’s face as she sat by my mom. My mom had an arm around her trying to comfort her but it wasn’t doing much good. I glanced at her and it was the first time I’ve ever seen Chloe look broken. I sighed. I spoke as reassuringly as I could.

“I don’t know what’s going on Chloe…but we’ll figure it out…I promise.”

She glared at me and moved away from my mother’s arms.

“Is that all you can say Clark? Everything will be fine…We’ll figure it out…Look around you! There is something going on with me and we have no idea what it is or how to fix it!”

She got up and when she did her chair slammed back. She shook her head and more tears fell down her face. It made my heart hurt. It killed me that I couldn’t do or say anything to make this better for her. Things have been increasingly rough on her ever since she found out about the baby and I was afraid it was just going to keep getting worse.

“Clark Meteor rocks make me sick…I can walk through fire with out getting a single burn on my body…”

She trailed off but I didn’t need her to finish the sentence. What if she was becoming like me…It’s not necessarily a bad thing it’s just…we don’t know how it’s happening or if it could hurt her and that’s unacceptable.  

I got up and walked over to her. The first time I tried to pull her into my arms she hit me and pushed me away…but the second time when she hit me I wouldn’t let her go and she wound up collapsing in my arms crying. I held onto her and my mom slowly got up and exited the kitchen to give us some time alone.

“Hey…I love you and even if everything isn’t ok we’ll still get through it because you have me and I won’t let anything happen to you. So…anyway…”

I thought changing the subject might help get her mind off things.

“What do you say we get you cleaned up…”

I gave her a small smile.

“You’re looking kind of ashy to me Chloe.”

That got a small smile from her and she sniffed.

“You too…your shirt is all ripped.”

I nodded and moved her to the direction of the stairs.


(Chloe POV)

As we were walking up the stairs I stopped and he bumped into me from behind. I just remembered Lana was supposed to come here…with everything that just happened I forgot to tell him. He glanced at me with an inquisitive look.

“Why are you stopping?”

“Because I forgot to tell you the reason I came home early.”

He motioned for me to tell him.

“Well I did what you said and I called Lana…long story short we made up and she told me that she’s being stalked by someone. And before you ask no I don’t know who. Lex has had his men working on it since they found out and there aren’t any leads yet. But see Lex is going out of town and I might have offered Lana a place to stay.”

He looked at me and his mouth dropped open.

“Tell me your joking…”

“Not exactly…I thought she’d say no because the two of you aren’t exactly on speaking terms…but she didn’t…she actually seemed pretty happy about staying here. I wanted to let you know she was coming to stay for a day or two before she actually got here. Plus I think something’s going on. We’re going to have to be careful while she’s here Clark.”

He sighed rubbed his face with his hand and nodded.

“I guess I better go get the rest of your car off the front lawn…and make sure the burns on the grass are gone…man Chloe…I really wish you would have said something sooner.”

I rolled my eyes at him.

“Yes Clark I should have mentioned this while I thought I was burning in a car explosion…it’ll only take a few seconds for you to clean up…stop your whining. I’m going to shower.”

I leaned over kissed him and went upstairs to shower off the dust and soot from the fire. If I was becoming like Clark I sure hope I got the super hearing and super speed also….I could go on vacation whenever I wanted without paying plus hello super hearing….better than any listening device!


(Lana POV)

I was putting some things in an over night bag when Lex came into the room. He was leaning on the doorframe watching me. I smiled at him.

“What?”

He shook his head…

“Nothing…you’re beautiful you know that?”

I chuckled and zipped up my bag. I faced him and there was a small smile on his face.

“I bet you say that to all your fiancé’s”

He laughed and walked into the room.

“You’ve got me pinned to a tee…”

I nodded.

“You know it.”

He leaned down and kissed me. I returned the kiss eagerly and when he pulled away I grinned up at him. He had a frown on his face, which made the smile leave my face.

“I really hate leaving you here while all this is going on Lana…I don’t like the thought that while I’m away someone could be here hurting you…I don’t know what I’d do if anything ever happened to you or the baby…you inspire me to be a good man…I’d be lost without you.”

I stroked his face and kissed him again. He was always saying the most amazing things to me. I’ve known ever since Lex and I got together that he was the one I was going to spend the rest of my life with…curious as to why? When I was with Clark things were never this simple…now I’m not saying anything bad about Clark because he always treated me well.

But with him it felt like I was always forcing our relationship to work…we rarely agreed on anything and when it came to the big stuff, the things we should have been going to each other for…we were always on opposite sides of the spectrum…But with Lex…he gets me. He doesn’t underestimate me and he treats me as an equal. No lies…No secrets…just plain unadulterated honesty…and that’s one of the many reason’s I love him.
When I spoke my voice came out soft and reassuring.

“Everything is going to be fine Lex. I’m staying at the Kent farm and it’s going to be a full house there…so no worries.”

He raised his brow at the comment.

“Yes I do recall you telling me that earlier…I am curious as to why you’d except Chloe’s offer though considering you didn’t even want to be in the same room as Clark a few days ago. What caused this change of heart? If you don’t mind me asking…”

I moved away from him and sat on the bed. I knew this was coming. It had been bugging him all day and not that he was about to leave he wanted to know the reason that I decided to stay at Clarks…it was more curiously then jealousy…Lex knew I loved him he wasn’t worried about Clark. I sighed and looked up.

“Honestly?”

He nodded.

“I don’t expect anything less…”

“Clark is different Lex…”

His head tilted to the side a bit and the look on his face became intrigued.

“What makes you say that Lana?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Because I have eyes?”

I paused and he looked amused.

“I don’t know how but I know there is something different about Clark Kent…he has a secret…I know that Chloe knows it…but he’s never been able to be honest with me about it…and that’s a very large part why our relationship didn’t work. They expect me to ignore every weird thing that goes on involving him…and I’m done doing that. I’m done justifying why things happen…I want to know what his secret is…and I’m going to find out whether they want me to or not.”

When he looked at me I saw pride flitter across his face and then a look of satisfaction took its place. He walked over to me and lifted my hands into his.

“Is this how you really feel…No going back? You want to find out what Clark’s been hiding…no matter what?”

He was looking deep into my eyes appraising me. There was something there that looked off to me and then I realized this was another one of his insecurities. What he was about to tell me he felt would make me think differently of him and so he was giving me a chance to back out…A chance to claim ignorance on one of his darker obsessions.

I know there are things Lex doesn’t tell me. I’m not completely naive…but the difference between his secrets and Clarks are…Lex excludes me because he doesn’t think I’m ready for what he’s doing…he loves me so much and he’s afraid that if he shows me the darker sides of himself that I’ll leave him. Clark didn’t tell me because he didn’t trust me with his secrets…That make all the difference when I look at it.
I sat up straighter and squeezed his hands to make sure he knew we were on the same page.

“Lex…no going back. You and I are in this together. I know…I know there are some thing’s that you don’t like telling me. Everyone needs there privacy and I’d never invade yours. But I want you to know…you can tell me anything…nothing you say to me could change the way I feel about you.”

He gave me a small smile and nodded. He stood up and took my hand.

“In that case…before I go I have something to show you…”

He lead me out of the room we walked around to the west wing of the hallway and he lead me down to the last door on the left. He paused in front of it and turned to me. His voice was stern and warm at the same time and the look on his face was a mixture of excitement and reservation.

“I want you to listen closely Lana…what I’m about to show you…there are very few people who know about this…this…room is part of a top secret project that I have been working on with one other person. A doctor…If everything works out the way I have planned it could be one of the largest discoveries man kind has ever made…Once I open this door…you are a part of this and will be expected to see it to it’s conclusion…”

He trailed off and I took a deep breath. I nodded for him to continue and when he did my heart sped up and chills went down my spine.

“It may involve certain people you care about…and I’m not exactly sure what will become of these people after everything is completed…I would never force my work upon you Lana…what I do with my research and experiments…can sometimes be dangerous and even on occasion a little brutal. With that said if I open this door you’re putting yourself into that aspect of my world…The part that you don’t see all the time.”

He looked down then put the key into the door. I held my hand against my stomach and for a minute I wasn’t sure if I wanted to see what was on the other side. I wanted to run to the other side of the house and never come back here. But I stood my ground. Lex didn’t open the door but he did look at my face and he must have seen the hesitation because he stopped.

“Lana…if you don’t want to…”

I cut him off and my voice was strong…determined.

“I do. I’m tired of being in the dark Lex. I’m tired of waiting for everything to come to me…It’s time I started taking the initiative. Show me…”

He looked at me and his eyes bore into me.

“Lana I want you to think about this for a second…no don’t interrupt me…humor me ok…the hesitation...maybe that’s your heads way of telling you that you’re not emotionally ready to be involved in this yet. Please just make sure…because like I said before once you see this you’ll need to lie to the people you care about…you’ll have to pretend like everything is the same even though you know it’s not…there will be tests and experiments that will happen…and you might have to look that person in the eye the next day and act like you weren’t the one helping to perform them. Can you do that…can you turn your back on people who you’ve known your whole life to get answers that you feel you deserve?”

His voice was intense and the look on his face was inquiring. Could I? Could I turn my back on my friends and help Lex with whatever he was doing? I looked into his eyes and I saw him laying himself on the line knowing that whatever he was about to show me could change our relationship forever…Yes…I could leave my old life behind…the places…the people…I could start a new chapter in life…by Lex’s side. We are a family through thick and thin and in a few weeks through good and bad times…It will hurt and doing this will probably change me in ways I didn’t know yet but this was about answers…finding out the truth…I’d help Lex and if I had to walk over a few people to do it…then I’d do what I have to do.

He knew the moment I found my answer. I looked up at him and squared my shoulders. My voice was strong.

“Yes…I can do that. Lex I care about a lot of people but I love you. And I’m not just some schoolgirl choosing her crushes side over her friends. I am a women looking for answers to questions I’ve had my whole life. I will do what I need to in order to get those answers. I don’t care what’s behind that door…if it can help us find out what I want to know then I want you to let me into that part of your life…and I promise you I will not disappoint or betray you…”

He sensed my seriousness and leaned down to capture my lips in a hot kiss. When we separated he turned the key and opened the door. I took a deep breath and followed him inside…what I saw when I looked around the room made me gasp and grab for something to hold onto. Lex put his arm around me to steady my body and my grip was bruising as I clutched at his arm white knuckled. Oh my god…..


(Lois POV)

I pulled my car into the front of the Kent farm and got out. As I was walking over to the backdoor I saw Clark chucking something in the garbage…was that a license plate? I shook my head he’s so weird…and extremely dirty. Does the boy ever stop doing farm work?

“Hey Smallville…what happened to your clothes? It looks like you stood a little to close to the fire place.”

He glared at me and walked closer.

“Lois…I’d say it was nice to see you…but I’d be lying…”

I gave him a sweet smile and fluttered my eyelashes.

“Ooo Clarkie…how you flatter me…”

I looked around and before he could say anything else I frowned.

“Aren’t you freezing out here like that? It’s like fifty degrees out Smallville…What were you…born on an ice planet or something…jeez”

He looked jumpy and gave a nervous chuckle.

“Uh…no…no of course not…what is it that you want Lois?”

I looked around and didn’t see Chloe’s car…crap! I really didn’t feel like driving to Metropolis right now it was getting late.

“I guess Chloe’s not home huh..”

He shook his head and started to walk inside. He spoke over his shoulder.

“No she’s here. When I left her she was about to get in the shower…I’ve been out here a while she should be done.”

I frowned and followed him inside.

“She’s here…well where’s her car?”

He froze in his tracks…and there goes the stuttering again…he’s so weird.

“Umm well…you…see…there…she…it was stolen…yea…that’s what happened.”

My eyes bugged out.

“Oh my god and you didn’t call me Smallville! Is Chloe okay? Sometime I really don’t know where you put that brain of yours…does it hide from you or something? It’s probably afraid you’ll dress it in plaid….”

I continued my tirade and Clark just looked confused. I saw his head turn towards the stairs as if he was listening to something. I saw him move closer to the steps and a couple of seconds later Chloe came down. He looked relived. I shook my head.

He was such a pansy sometimes…it’s like one minute he was this super confident guy and the next he was a dorky farm boy…Clark Kent…schizophrenic! I heard Chloe’s voice and tuned out my thought.

“Hey Lo’ what brings you by?”

She smiled but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. I shrugged

“I got the weirdest text message for you it’s encrypted, which by the way I didn’t even know you could do to a text message but anyway yea and…it’s from a number I don’t recognize. I tried to break the code to read the message and find out who it belonged to but all I got were dead ends. Thought I’d bring it to you and let you try.”

She laughed.

“So what you’re saying is you tried to hack a message that was sent for me by the way and when you couldn’t get it open you decided to bring it to me?”

I grinned at her.

“Yup”

But then my face lost its smile and I went over to Chloe.

“But forget this for right now…are you ok? Clark told me about your car…”

Her eyes went wide and she whipped her head over to Clark. His voice was high as he spoke to her.

“Yeah…I told Lois your car was stolen in Metropolis. She didn’t let me finish though…”

He looked back at me.

“Chloe wasn’t there when it happened. She went to come home and the car was gone. That’s when she went back to The Planet and called me and I came and got her…end of story…see she didn’t get hurt.”

I looked at Chloe so she could confirm what he was saying because for some reason I just didn’t believe him. It sounded like he was hiding something.

She nodded and gave me a small smile.

“Yup…that’s exactly what happened.”

She walked away from us and into the kitchen but I could still hear her voice.

“You know what…it’s actually good you’re here Lois.”

She came out of the kitchen with a bottle of water and I saw Clark raise an eyebrow at Chloe and speak.

“It is?”

She slapped him in the stomach as she walked by and he ooffed as I laughed. Clark followed Chloe to the couch and they sat together. I followed them in and stood there waiting for her to finish.

“Yes Clark…it is.”

She looked back at me.

“When was the last time we all hung out? Lana is coming over there’s some kind of stalker after her or something so she’s staying here for a few days.”

Whoa, whoa, whoa…She’s staying here…that is weird. After everything that happened at her engagement party I didn’t think I’d be seeing her around Clark or Chloe anytime soon. Guess I was wrong…

“That’s interesting…I didn’t think I’d see you hanging out with Lana anytime soon…”

When I trailed off Clark snorted and his voice came out whiny.

“Yea neither did I.”

Chloe hit him again and I smirked. She had him wrapped around her finger and I thought that was too funny…Never underestimate a Sullivan-Lane girl…we do it best! Her voice was amused when she spoke again.

“Anyway she should be here soon and it might be nice for all of us to do something together for once…you know…pretend to be normal people our age who aren’t pregnant, married , engaged broken hearted and having normal everyday problems…just a couple of kids kicking back and having a movie night….could be interesting .”

I saw Clark grin and I shrugged. What the hell right…she’s right…we don’t do this stuff often…might as well pass the time here instead of at home alone.

“Sure Chloe…bring on the movies.”

She clapped her hands and just then the doorbell rang. We all looked over at it and nobody moved.


(Clark POV)

I rolled my eyes.

“No please Lois…you’re standing but don’t get the door…I’ll get it.”

I got up off the couch and walked over to the door. I knew it was Lana and I really didn’t want to open the door and see a look of accusation on her face…I sighed. I opened the door and two big guys I suites immediately pushed by me and started searching the house. I looked over extremely confused…

“Hey…HEY…What are you doing?”

They faced me and stopped for a minute.

“We were instructed by Mr. Luthor to secure the indoor and outdoor parameters to ensure Miss. Lang safety.”

Ah…of course…Lex sent bodyguards. I glanced at the door and Lana gave me a small smile. She looked a little pale but aside from that I didn’t see any animosity in her reaction to seeing me…weird. I opened the door wider for her and she walked in with a small bag.

“Hello Clark.”

“Hey Lana…I’m sorry to hear about this stalker thing…but I’m glad Chloe and I could help.”

She nodded and moved into the room.

“Me to. Thank you for letting me crash here while Lex is out of town. I appreciate it.”

I nodded again. I looked at Lana and placed a hand on her arm. She stopped and looked at me.

“Listen…I’m really sorry…about…you knows what happened at your engagement party. I didn’t mean what happened really…I…”

She cut me off and sighed.

“Clark I’ll tell you the same thing I told Chloe…yes it sucked having my night ruined but it wasn’t you fault…you were infected with that woman’s love crap…it reacted badly with you guys…I get it…lets not rehash it ok?”

“Sure...ok”

She nodded and then walked into the living room where Chloe and Lois were talking. I heard them great her and then they all started laughing. I smiled I haven’t heard Chloe laugh like that in a while. Maybe tonight would be good for her. When I came into the living room they all turned and laughed. I raised an eyebrow and looked at Chloe. She smirked at me.

“Since the united States is a democracy Clark the girls and I determined that we should all have a say in deciding who went out to get the movies and junk food.”

I nodded. Sounded fair and yet there all smiling in my direction. I spoke cautiously.

“Okay…”

Lois and Lana chuckled and Chloe spoke.

“Well it has been decided that you will be getting refreshments and movies…”

“Me…why?”

Lois took her turn and spoke up.

“Because Smallville…you’ve been out voted.”

I rolled my eyes.

“What are you talking about….I didn’t even get to vote…I thought this was a democracy.”

Lana grinned and chimed in.

“It is so even though you didn’t vote it doesn’t matter because majority rules. And we..”

She pointed to her Chloe and Lois…

“Are the majority..”

They all smiled and I shook my head. They all ganged up on me…nice…this is what happens when you put one man in a room full of women…they take over like dictators and bring you to your knees until your doing whatever they want…

I got a paper and pen and wrote down what everybody wanted including some incredibly disgusting things for Chloe and Lana. I grabbed the paper and went to walk out as I turned around to take one more look at them the. I smiled.

There we all were. All together, with everything we'd all been through over the last five years with the exception of Lois. Though she’s been through at lot with us in the past two years. The battles we'd all fought with Meteor freaks and each other, the relationships that were formed and have evolved, the feelings of friendship and love for each other, stronger than any feelings we'd ever known could exist. And somehow in this moment while I stood there looking over at them laughing and goofing around…I had this really strong, really upsetting feeling, that this was the last time we'd all be together like this…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  06 Dec 2007 05:33
That's it for tonight folks, I'll paste more later.  It's been hectic lately, what with finding that my car had been broken into on my way out to go work.  They only took my radio and my wallet (note to self - never leave your wallet in the glove box!! ).  So, I spent several hours on the phone with credit card outfits, credit bureaus, banks, the DMV, the social security administration, and my insurance company.  Oh, I also had to call the police to report the break in.  I did find out that I was not the only one hit, there were several at the apartment complex, along with other apartments along this road.  The yo-yo that did this wore gloves like women's gardening gloves.  This was the conclusion from the CSU team that dusted my car, showing me the smeared prints from the rubber tabs that are found on the finger tips of gardening gloves.  The good news was they did not smash my window in, it was simply out of its track, and I was able to remedy the situation on my own.  What I found interesting is that I had to remove panels, etc. when I installed the radio, but the CSU team told me people like this can have a radio out of a car in 30 seconds!!  Man, that's fast!! 
__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  06 Dec 2007 23:52
Chapter 10 - Part C

Quote:


Chapter 10 Part C

(Clark POV)

I got up extra early this morning to start my chores. Lois had spent the night last night and Lana was still here also and with everything that’s been going on it probably wouldn’t be a good idea for me to get caught using my powers…So like I said I got up and extra hour early because I was doing my chores the normal way. I saw my Mom walk through the barn doors as I was trying to get the horse back in its stall.

“You're okay. Come on.”

I heard her voice and it sounded confused.

“Clark? What are you still doing out here?”

I gave a frustrated sigh and glanced at her….wasn’t it obvious what I was doing?

“Well, I'm still doing my chores.”

“Well, you usually finish those in about two minutes. How is it that I drove to Metropolis, dropped off paperwork for the senate and came all the way back home before you finished?”

After I got the horse back in the stall I turned around and faced her while I wiped off my hands.

“'Cause I'm doing them the normal way. I feel like someone's been looking over my shoulder, like I'm being watched. Plus with Lois and Lana still here it’s better to be safe then sorry. Speaking of which I’m surprised the girls aren’t up yet.”

Just then I heard Chloe’s voice coming from the door.

“We are…Lana and Lois are attempting to make pancakes in your kitchen…Lana’s doing pretty good…but I think Lois is going to burn the kitchen down.”

She grinned and I laughed. My Mom just sighed. My Mom placed an arm around Chloe and spoke lightly with a grin.

“I'm going to go inside and make some hot cocoa to thaw out the two of us who can feel how cold it is.”

Chloe laughed.

“To be honest I’m not that cold but thank you, Mrs. Kent.

She shook her head and addressed Chloe.

“Chloe…it’s Martha…you’ve been living here for months now and you’re married to my son…people are going to think I’m one of those horrible mother in-laws if you keep calling me Mrs. Kent.”

I chuckled and Chloe smiled. My Mom squeezed her one last time before going inside to make sure Lois didn’t set the kitchen on fire.

I glanced at Chloe and smiled.

“Hey…”

She came over and grinned.

“Hey back…”

Her face became serious. When she spoke her voice was quiet but alarmed.

“When I woke up this morning I didn’t see you anywhere so I went upstairs to see if you were there…and I found Lana snooping around your room Clark.”

I raised an eyebrow…and frowned. I corrected Chloe when I spoke.

“Our room…what do you think she was looking for?”

She shrugged and moved away from me.

“I don’t know Clark but if I was trying to find out my ex’s secret what better place to start then his own backyard.”

I didn’t want to think that Lana could be so conniving…but if this was true we had a big problem.

“If your theory is true…then now we know why Lana agreed to come and stay here so quickly…”

Chloe nodded. I shook my head and walked over to the stairs leading to the loft. I sat down and put my head in my hands. I always tried to be calm in front of Chloe but I couldn’t keep doing this….I couldn’t keep bottling up my emotions because it was seriously starting to reek havoc on me.

“This is ridiculous…I can’t keep this up…what the hell is happening with everyone? Lex and I used to be friends…now we can’t even be in the same room with each other. I don’t know what happened to Lana she’s a completely different person from the girl I fell in love with. Everyone is turning there back on me…I barely have anyone left…"

"Oliver left town with the guys to try and make a difference and stop 33.1 and where am I? That’s right you guessed it I’m stuck here on the farm with a mother whose barely home anymore, a farm that needs to be taken care of, Phantoms that have to be captured, Lex who needs to be watched, a wife whose pregnant with someone else’s baby and Lois as the closet person to a friend I can actually have a conversation with. Everything has been happening so fast and I’ve been trying to take it all in stride but I can’t keep doing this…”

I shook my head.

“I can’t keep being everyone’s rock when I can barely be me own…everyone is counting on me and all I want to do is just take off…and leave everything behind…”

I looked up when I heard Chloe’s breath catch. She was standing there with tears in her eyes. She looked at me like I had just slapped her across the face and it wasn’t until then that I realized what I had said. Chloe isn’t just my best friend who I vent to anymore. She’s my wife…a wife that I just said I rushed into a marriage with and wanted to leave behind.

Crap…that’s not…I didn’t mean it that way…I was just venting I needed to get some things out…and Chloe has always been the one I could talk to…I didn’t realize… I stood up and started to walk to her. She held up her hand for me to stop and I did. My voice was hesitant and I spoke deliberately and softly.

“Chloe…”

“Don’t!”

She shook her head and gave me a bitter chuckle.

“I can’t believe…I thought…I thought all this was real…”

I was already moving closer and shaking my head but she moved further away with each step I took.

“It is real Chloe…”

She ignored me and kept talking.

“Do y..you…regret this? Do you regret us becoming a couple…do you regret standing by me while I’m carrying Jimmy’s baby?”

I didn’t know what to say. Of course I didn’t regret it…Chloe’s my best friend…I love her…sometimes I just wish things could have gone slower….but I’ve never regretted a second of what we have together.

“N..no…Chloe I don’t…regret us I just…I think…”

She stopped me. I tried to finish but her words cut me off.

“I don’t want to here it…we rushed this…I knew we did. I should have listened to my gut…”

She looked up at me and gave me a sad smile.

“But you were so sure…you sounded so sincere that I thought we could handle anything together…I was wrong. We can’t handle this…”

I was starting to get frustrated so raised my voice.

“Chloe STOP! Just stop making this out to be some kind of attack on you! I love you okay…I just…I needed to vent. We are only twenty years old and most twenty year olds don’t have to deal with half of the stuff that we do…Forgive me if for once I needed to freak out a little bit…A person can only have so much responsibility thrown on their shoulders before they need to let off a little steam…I didn’t mean anything by it…”

Her voice was attempting to be hard as she spoke.

“I understand that Clark…Everyone needs a good freak out once in a while…trust me I do it enough…but I don’t ever once remember wanting to leave you…actually it was quite the opposite…thinking of you didn’t make me feel obligated…it make me stable…you were my rock when everything got overwhelming…”

The tears in her eyes made me feel guilty. I shook my head, looked down and shrugged.

“I told you Chloe I was just venting...”

She cut me off again except this time her voice was soft.

“Yes Clark venting…but you categorized me as part of the problem…don’t you see that? Why won’t you let me be there for you? I told you a long time ago that even hero’s need to be saved sometimes…why won’t you let me be that for you Clark?”

I looked at her and her voice was begging me for an answer. But I didn’t have one. I was quiet and she just shook her head and I could smell the salt of her tears. Her voice was shaky and barely a whisper.

“People don’t say things like that when their venting Clark…They say what’s bothering them sure, they say why there mad, they don’t say they want to leave their wife and her unborn child…do you love me Clark?”

I looked into her eyes and spoke clearly without hesitation.

“Yes.”

“Ever since I found out your secret…have we always been honest with each other about the important things?”

My voice still didn’t waver.

“Yes.”

She walked closer to me and looked at my face and her voice was pleading.

“Then tell me the truth Clark…please…I won’t be mad…j…just tell me the truth. Do you regret trying to make this marriage work…helping me with the baby…being…with…me?”

Tears were coursing down her cheeks by the end of her sentence. I was quiet for a minute and when I spoke my voice was tired but honest. I took her hands in mine and held them tight.

“Honestly Chloe…I don’t regret our relationship…and I don’t regret sticking around to help you with the baby…and I don’t regret marrying you. I do wish that we had slowed things down and thought realistically about what we were doing…"

I paused to collect my thoughts and continued.

"I love you and I plan to spend the rest of my life with you…but sometimes when things get to be so much that I don’t even think I can handle it…I start to wish that forever had started later on in life when we were both more prepared for it."

I could tell she wanted to say something but I wouldn't let her not yet anyway because I wasn't done.

"But that isn’t regret…that’s worry…I’m always trying to be strong for other people that I don’t know how to let people be strong for me and so I take everything on myself and sometimes it gets to me so bad I want to run…but know that I’d never leave you Chloe…I’m all in here…a moment of weakness where I’m freaking out isn’t going to change that.”

She wanted honesty and so I gave it to her. Chloe has given me so much happiness that I couldn’t possibly regret being with her…but there is so much going on right now and I’m frustrated and scared…I’m scared for Chloe…I’m scared for our son…I’m scared for Lana…and I’m scared for me…I’m so scared that I am going to screw up when it really matters and I don’t know what I’d do if I lost Chloe…She was the only thing I had left…

(Lana POV)

Lois and I had finished making pancakes with Mrs. Kent’s help. After we ate Mrs. Kent had to go into town to pick up a few things and Lois offered to drive her. Chloe was out in the barn with Clark and I was alone in house except for the two security guards that I couldn’t see outside the doors.

If I was going to try and get into Chloe’s computer now was the time. I walked around the house and looked for her computer. I couldn’t find it anywhere downstairs so I went up to Clark’s bedroom and there it was on his desk. I stared at it for a few minutes before turning it on. I browsed around the different things on her desktop. I clicked on a few folders and found one that said “CK” on it.

I hesitated for about a second before double clicking on the document. As soon as I did the computer prompted me for a password and I slammed it shut in frustration. Of course it’s password protected…like she would be so careless to leave stuff about Clark just lying around. I sighed and heard a clatter from outside Clark’s room. I moved away from the computer and slowly glanced out the door. I called out.

“Clark…Chloe?”

When neither of them answered I thought it might be one of the security team. So I walked out of the room and called to the head guy down the stairs.

“Brady?”

I saw a shadow run by downstairs and my heart started pounding. I cautiously walked down the stairs holding a hand against my stomach. When I got downstairs and didn’t see anyone I called out to Brady again.

“Brady?”

I opened the kitchen door and didn’t find anything outside. I went back inside and turned around. There on the kitchen table was a red package. I put my hand over my mouth. I was absolutely horrified…how in the world did someone get in here in broad day light with the security team here.

I took the package and carefully opened it. There was red lingerie in the box with a note attached to it. It said "I want you to wear this... when I kill you." I gasped and when I looked up I saw shadows by the door. I went to run and was grabbed by a large hand. I screamed and then I heard Brady’s voice cutting through my screams. I calmed down and stopped struggling.

“Miss Lang, what’s going on? What are you doing?”

I tried to catch my breath and right before I spoke Clark came running into the room. Clark’s voice was as concerned as his facial expression.

“What happened?”

I took a deep breath.

“There's someone in the house.”

Brady shook his head and Clark glanced around.

“That's impossible, okay? My men are guarding the house at all perimeters.”

“I don’t see anyone here Lana…are you sure you’re not just tired and maybe you thought you saw someone?”

I glared at both of them…trying to make me seem crazy. I pointed to the box and then picked it up and handed it to Brady.

“Then how do you explain that?”

Clarks face turned pensive and he examined the box from afar.

One of the other security guards came into the house. His voice was deep when he spoke.

“What's going on?”

Brady explained to Mack what had happened.

“We’ve got a serious problem here”

He glanced around.

“You’re security has been breeched. We are going to have to move you back to the Luthor mansion for more security.”

Clark looked at me and I could see he wanted to protest. I gave him a small smile.

“It’s fine Clark he’s right. It’s probably safer at the mansion right now. I thought if there were more people around the person who be scared off…obviously was wrong.”

I looked over at the security team.

“I’ll go pack my bag and be down soon. One of you please get Lex on the phone for me.”

I went upstairs and got my stuff together. I didn’t find much here…but I’d keep looking…now after everything that Lex showed me…I was convinced more than ever that their was something different about Clark Kent…


(Lex POV)

I was sitting in the limo on my way to a meeting when my phone rang. I picked it up and it was Brady. He explained that Lana’s safety had been compromised at the Kent farm so they were taking her back to the mansion.

I cursed to myself…I knew I shouldn’t have left her there alone. I got off the phone after giving him strict orders to shoot anyone who came within a ten foot radius of Lana…his instructions were simply put…Shoot first ask questions later.

I told my driver to turn around because we were heading back to the airport. There was no way I was going to leave Lana and my son to face this alone plus Lana and I had some things to discuss about her involvement in my latest project, which by the way she took exceedingly well. I glanced at my watch….it’s going to take some string pulling but I should be home later tonight and I’d make sure the guy was caught…nobody threatens the people I love and lives to say he did…


(Lois POV)

I came up the stairs and Clark was sitting in that loft of his bouncing a stupid ball against the wall. I shook my head. He looked depressed and I came here to yell at him…wonderful this is going to go just terrific.

“What are you doing Smallville?”

I must have startled him because when the ball he just threw bounced back it hit him in his head. He shook his head a glared at me.

“I’m not in the mood right now Lois.”

I nodded. Yup this particular fight was big. I had gone shopping with Mrs. Kent this morning and then I’d dropped her off at home. When I went back to the Talon Chloe was there and she was extremely upset…so upset that she asked if there was still room in my apartment for her.
I ignored Clark’s comment and walked over to him.

“We’ll you better get in the mood…I have a very upset cousin on my doorstep because of something you said or did…Clark…she’s talking about moving back in with me what happened?”

He abruptly stood up.

“She said that? She said she wants to move back in with you?”

I nodded and his face fell. My god could he get more mopey!

“Snap out of this self-induced depression…and tell me what you said.”

He spent the next few minutes explaining to me what happened and I shook my head. Wow…when Clark put his foot in his mouth it sure did get jammed in there. There isn’t anything for him to do but grovel for her forgiveness.

“You messed up Smallville and It’s gonna take a lot more than an apology to get Chloe back here. I don’t understand what happened…I thought things with you guys were going good.”

He sighed.

“They were…You have to understand that there’s a lot going on right now and I was just feeling overwhelmed. I don’t regret being with Chloe Lois…she’s probably one of the only things at this point that I don’t regret…and I know deep down she knows that. She’s just so worried that after all this time I’m going to think being with her is a mistake and leave."

He took a deep breath and kept going.

"But you have to know I wouldn’t do that. I was having a rough morning and since I’m used to talking to Chloe about my feelings I kind of just put it all out there not realizing that because of our…change in relationship there are some things that would have to be….rephrased for girlfriend ears….you know?”

I chuckled. As much as I hated to admit it Clark was a good guy and things with him and Chloe would work out…she knows Clark loves her…she’s just stubborn and doesn’t want to give in first.

I got off the railing I was leaning on gave him a small smirk and walked down the stairs to leave when he called out to me.

“Tell her I love her…okay?”

I nodded but didn’t turn around.

“Will do smallville. If I don’t have her back here in a day or two I expect you to come find her got it?”

He chuckled.

“Yes ma’am.”

I smiled and left to go comfort Chloe…boy was it going to be a long, long day.


(Lana POV)


We got to the mansion and I settled myself into the study. Mack knocked opened the door and came in.

“Lex's plane is in the air now, but he won't be back until tomorrow. With the snow storm, the plane was rerouted.”

I nodded. That sucked but at least he’d be home soon. I gave Mack a small smile and spoke lightly.

“Thank you... for everything. If it wasn't for you, I don't even want to think about what would have happened.”

I saw him slowly remove his earpiece from his ear as I was pouring myself some water. He spoke again this time there was something in his voice that worried me.

“I hope I'm not crossing a line, but, honestly... Lex never should have left you alone.”

I suddenly became very uncomfortable…When did he start using Lex’s first name…something’s not right here. I turned to face him.

“When did you start calling him by his first name?”

He gave me a nervous chuckle.

“Uh…I'm sorry. It's been a rough night.”

I agreed. I was starving…I just realized now that I hadn’t had much to eat today with all the commotion. I addressed Mack in a professional way.

“Yeah, I know. I don't think I've eaten since this whole thing started. Could you ask the kitchen to bring something up for me?”

He spoke clearly but soft as he moved further into the room.

“I sent the staff and the rest of the team home.”

I was startled. Who does he think he is? Something is really wrong her end I’m beyond uncomfortable in his presence. Something is wrong here…the best thing I can do is just play along.

He chuckled and made up some excuse about not wanting them to get stuck in the storm. I smiled.

“No, no, it's okay. It's actually very considerate.”

“Like something you'd do.”

Okay this is officially getting to weird for me. He laughed again and continued talking.

“It's true. You're not like all the other girls that Lex paraded in and out of here.”

I frowned. As he moved within inches from me…

“I’ve been crossing a lot of lines lately. All for you, Princess.”

This explains everything…how the stalker got photos of me how security missed him how he got the package into the Kent’s.

“I watch over you every day... and you never even notice.”

This is extremely bad….

He started saying all this stuff about how good I am and Lex is bad. How he needed to save me from a person like Lex because I was too pure hearted or something. He wanted me to pick everything up and just go with him so I decided to play along again until I came up with a plan.

I told him he was right and I wanted to go…and when he turned his back I smashed done of Lex’s things over his back and ran as fast as I could….but there wasn’t anyone here and there was no wear to go…


(Clark POV)

It was early and I was already done with my chores. I was sitting on the porch thinking. Last night I had gone to visit Lana to see how she was holding up and got there just in time to see one of Lex’s security people attacking her.

They wound up falling through the roof and I got underneath them in time to catch her before she hit the ground. She was shocked and we spoke for a few minutes…me dancing around how I got there in time and all that as usual…I left there and came home hoping to find Chloe in bed waiting for me. No such luck.

She didn’t come home all night so here I am sitting on the porch hoping she’ll come walking up the pathway in the near future. I had called Lois last light but no one answered. I went by the Talon also but no one was home. They must have gone out. I was interrupted by a small female voice and I grinned.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

“Chloe…”

She gave me half a smile.

“The one and only.”

I got up and met her half way. When I was right in front of her I hugged her tight.

“I missed you last night.”

She nodded and looked down then back at me.

“I needed some time to sort stuff out.”

“Understandable…listen Chloe about yesterday…I honestly didn’t mean to imply that I regretted anything with us…I’m really sorry…I just get overwhelmed sometimes and I’m not exactly sure how to deal with it.”

She nodded again and when she spoke her voice was serious and she held my gaze.

“Clark…there is only one way this is going to work with us...and that’s if we’re honest with each other…even if it hurts. You need to learn how to lean on me. I promise you I won’t break…but you need to open that part of yourself up more or we’re never going to make it…”

She was right and I knew that. It was easier said then done but I’d work it out because I didn’t want to lose her.

“I know and your right…I will work on it.”

I paused and it was silent. I broke the silence with a soft voice.

“So are…are we okay?”

She smiled.

“Where getting there.”

I grinned and pulled her closer.

“Does this mean you’re coming home?”

She moved away from me and her smile was gone.

“I think we should give it a couple more days…but I promise I’ll come back Clark…I just need some me time.”

I guess I could understand that…

“Okay…I’ll wait…whenever you’re ready Chloe…I’m here…”

As I spoke I looked into her eyes and I could see the light in them. Everything was going to be okay…with us at least. We had a new problem to worry about and that was Lana snooping around both our personal things…she was no longer sitting out of the game…she was a solid player now…and she wasn’t playing alone…she was playing with Lex…I could feel the calm before the storm brewing. I just hoped that whatever flew our way after this was something that we were prepared to deal with…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 01:22
Chapter 11 - Part A

Quote:

Okay Guys...I'm about to Post the First Part to Chapter 11...But before I do I Need to Explain some things LOL.

If you remember seeing this Episode you know that it went by Different times of the same day and they were out of order...

Well the first Four POV are all thoughts that each Character is having some point in the early morning of the wedding day.

The actual Interaction or dialogue Doesn't start until you see a point of view with a time underneath it. I believe Lex is the first person to start and it goes from there...Hopefully you'll like this Chapter...But yea anyway LOL...Enjoy! 


Chapter 11 Part A

(Chloe POV)

It was early and I was in the church that Lana and Lex were going to be getting married in later today. Why am I here? Because I am Lana’s Maid of Honor and regardless of how I feel about this marriage I made a promise to her…so here I am fulfilling it. I carried a box of wedding favors over to a table and set them down as I glanced around. People were running around to get everything just the way the soon to be Mrs. Luthor wanted it.

I shook my head. For the life of me…I just don’t know how we all got here. A couple of years ago I never would have believed that Lana would fit the part she is playing right now…looking back on it now I don’t think I ever really gave her enough credit. I just always thought she was this pink princess who was perfect and naïve…I was wrong. I started pulling out the favors and lining them up on a linen covered table.

There was so much that had to be done today and I honestly felt like I wasn’t going to make it through the day…it’s getting extremely hard to take a deep breath and just smile everything off…there are only so many people I can take turning there back on me…lately I’ve just felt like I’m losing everyone…including Clark. It’s been two weeks and I still haven’t moved back into the farm. Clark has been snapping even more lately because I won’t come back and last night we had a fight.

I called him to ask him to pick me up for the wedding because I didn’t want to go alone…I couldn’t it was too hard. I needed him there…I needed the support…but he refused to go. He said he wouldn’t take any part in it and he didn’t want me there either. I was still hoping Lana would change her mind so I explained that I needed to go…but as usual his stubbornness got the better of him and we yelled for a couple of minutes which ended with me hanging up on him and I haven’t heard from him since…I closed my eyes and held onto the table…I can’t keep doing this…

I sighed…this was it…if something didn’t happen today to stop Lana from marrying Lex…I was going to lose my best friend…because once she became Mrs. Luthor…there wasn’t going to be anymore pretending or tip-toeing around each other. As cliché as it sounded it was going to be good against evil…her an Lex against Clark and I…and I wasn’t sure if I had it in me to push our friendship aside and do what I had to do for the greater good…


(Lana POV)

I was laying on a bed in my doctor’s office at the Smallville Medical Center. Lex was standing next to me and we were having another ultrasound done. The doctor pointed different parts of the baby out to us and as I watched Lex watching the monitor I saw him grin. I smiled. This was it…the day I have been waiting for with anxious anticipation and dreading all at the same time.

It was early morning and this was our last appointment before we were officially married. The ceremony was taking place later today and even though I wasn’t around the mansion or the church I knew there were a whole bunch of people already bustling about taking care of all the details.

Including my Maid of Honor…Chloe. Today would change everything between us…I've been avoiding the reality of my decisions since Lex opened the door and let me into the darker side of his life. But after today I wouldn’t be able to ignore it anymore. I now know everything Chloe has said in the past about Lex…is true…he has experimented on people…he did kidnap her when he found out she was a Meteor freak…and she is a large part of the new project he’s working on….and yet I still chose him…Does that make me a monster?

I shook my head and heard the doctor saying that him and Lex were going in the office to talk. I smiled nodded and they left. I got up and started to get dressed as I let my mind wonder again. I have always tried to live my life by my own set of morals…but lately the lines have been blurring and people I saw as friends…family…I’ve been looking at as enemies…threats…I’ve never been this conflicted in my life…and I only have myself to blame for it. I was putting on my shoes when Lex knocked.

“It’s open”

The door slid open and he smiled.

“I’m going to take off okay? I have a few things I need to take care of before the big day…so I’ll see you later?”

I gave him a tight smile and walked over to him. I leaned in and kissed him.

“I’ll see you later…I love you Lex.”

He gave me a strange look for a minute and then nodded.

“I love you too…”

And he walked out. As he walked out I felt the shift...this is how it’s going to be from now on…Lex and I against the world…against Chloe…Clark…and whoever else took their side…and for a minute I couldn’t breathe…I told him that I could do it…that I could turn my back on the people I cared about to get the answers that I wanted…needed…but what if I couldn’t…what if later on down the line I couldn’t do what it takes to put my friendship with Chloe and my love for Clark aside…would Lex still love me? Would he still trust me?

I had thought I made this decision weeks ago…but I was wavering now and I wasn’t sure why…could I really do this…could I turn my back on Chloe when she was going to need me the most…when I knew what Lex was planning would destroy the person she is…her spirit…could I be that callus… I never used to think so.

But now I’m not so sure…the thing that scares me the most is…there was a time when I would never even think of betraying Chloe and now my problem was that part of me wanted to…I got up shook my head and sighed. Today was supposed to be the happiest day in my life and instead it was completely bittersweet…I’d be gaining Lex and our son…and losing the girl I once was and everything that went with her…


(Clark POV)

I was standing in front of my closet looking at my clothes. Nothing seemed to be right for today. Lex had personally come to invite me to the wedding…he said something about wanting me to be able to see what I lost…Nice of him wasn’t it? I wasn’t going though…today was just another day…I had chores and errands to run…and yet I couldn’t seem to move past my closet.

These past two weeks have been horrible and it’s basically all my fault. I’ve only seen Chloe a few times and it seems like every time I saw her I was snapping at her for no reason. I told her I’d try to open my self up more…I’d lean on her when I needed help and not take everything on myself…I hadn’t been true to my word…because there is so much going on inside of me and I haven’t let Chloe in on any of it.

She’s been dealing with so much and I don’t feel like adding on to the burden…I’m surprised at how she’s been keeping herself together this long…
I shook my head and grabbed my blue flannel and started to get dressed. Last night though was by far our worst fight since the blow out in my barn.

She asked me to bring her to Lex and Lana’s wedding and I snapped at the idea of it. I knew why she wanted to go but unlike Chloe I’ve given up on hoping Lana will change her mind…I was trying to prepare myself for the fallout now…I didn’t know how far Lex and Lana would go and I was trying to come to terms with what I might have to do in order to protect Chloe…

Lana has been a part of my life since I could remember and even though I’m no longer IN love with her…I still love her. I don’t want it to have to come down to us against them…but I know it will. Lana has passed the point of no return…and instead of keeping Chloe close to me like I should be I’ve been pushing her further and further away…
I got up and walked downstairs. I made my way into the barn and started chucking hay bales across the barn.

It’s time I came clean…time I explained to Chloe exactly what’s been going on with me…she needed me and I was letting her down but the difference between last time and now was I had the power to rectify this situation and I would…today…because after this wedding…Chloe and I were going to need each other more then ever…

I could feel the war on the horizon…almost like a feeling gnawing at my body…Today would be the end to the last of our innocence and the beginning of a fight I wasn’t sure we were ready for…in the coming days we’d all grow up a little bit faster…be thrown into unions a little too quickly…and hang on with dear life to the people we still had left in our lives because who knows when they’d be taken away…



(Lex POV)

It was late morning and I had just left Lana at the doctor’s office. We came in separate cars because I had an early fitting this morning for my tux. Today was the day I’ve been waiting for, for what felt like forever…it was the day Lana finally became my wife, the day that the last part of my project would be put into action, and the day that Clark Kent would finally see me get what he has always wanted.

I leaned back in my chair and studied my wedding band that I held between my fingers. This ring would stand for everything Lana and I had…such a minuscule piece of metal that would bind us together…I came clean with her a few night’s ago…about everything…I have never been this honest with anyone in my life…I have never been this…vulnerable…I trust Lana though and I can see she is having a hard time coming to terms with everything…but I’m not worried…in the end it will all work out.

I spun the ring on my desk and when it stopped I let it fall. I clasped my hands together, leaned up and rested my elbows on my desk. Today was going to change everything…when I first met Clark…I used to think that I had to fight the darker urges I had…banish them…and Clark helped me do it…he always did have a way of keeping me from going to far…but when he abandoned me…that security left…and I embraced the darkness…the only light that shines through now is Lana…and she’s slowly making her way into the dark with me…

I sighed. I know that Clark knows I’m behind what’s going on with Chloe…he doesn’t know everything but he knows enough. He would be furious when he found out what I had planned and that Lana agreed to help me…but it didn’t matter…Part of what I was going to use Chloe for is to find out his secret…and he doesn’t even realize how it’s happening…

He’s said to me before that if I try to come after Chloe he would hurt me…I was counting on it. If Clark wanted a war…I’d give it to him…with Lana by my side through the whole thing. He’s been pushing Chloe away…and that’s honestly making everything easier…
I got up and put my jacket on. I needed to run a few more errands before this afternoon.

I walked out and to my car. Clark and I weren’t friends anymore…and I was done being cordial…If he wanted to stop me…he was going to have to go through me and my wife…and I doubt he’d risk Lana’s life…he might be in love with Chloe now…but the love he shared with Lana…feelings like that just don’t go away…she’s still in his heart and that is a weakness I can and will exploit…



Earlier The Same Day

(Lex POV)

7:14am

I propelled up in bed with sweat running down my face. I glanced around the room but Lana was nowhere to be seen. I shook my head. A nightmare…I haven’t had one of those in a long time…I was sitting in a large room with a projection of a ultrasound video of our baby on the opposite wall. I watched it silently and I could hear his heartbeat thudding around the room. After a minute I saw him move and when his face came into view his eyes were glowing white…

That’s when I woke up. I shook my head and got out of bed. I had a fitting this morning before our doctor appointment. I walked out of the bedroom and found Lana sitting in the study. I came over and kissed her head. She smiled up at me and I gave her a lazy grin.

“How'd you sleep?”

“Like a baby.”

At least one of us slept well. I didn’t want to worry her by telling her about my nightmare so I ignored it and smiled.

“Me too. But I don't know if I can wait. How about we just run off and elope?”

I raised an eyebrow and she chuckled at me and shook her head. Her voice was playful when she spoke.

“That would be a big waste of 400 game hens.”

I nodded.

“It's a big day. It's okay to be nervous.”

She shook her head and stood up. I placed my hand on her stomach and gave it a small rub. She leaned in and kissed me.

“I’m not nervous…I’m fine”

I nodded.

“I have a tux fitting before our doctors appointment this morning. So I thought we could meet at the hospital.”

She smiled.

“Sounds like a plan. I have a few things to do before then also. I have to go meet Chloe so I should probably get ready.”

She leaned up and kissed me then grinned.

“I’ll see you at the hospital.”

I gave her a half smile and she walked out. I should probably get ready to. I went to my office first because there were a few papers that I had to sign before the wedding and the shop was across the street so I decided to kill to birds with one stone. I was looking out the large glass windows when I heard someone come into my office. I heard my dads voice behind me.

“Busy day at the office?”

I turned around and faced him with half a smirk on my face.

“I just had some papers to sign before the wedding.”

He shrugged lightly and he spoke in a knowing voice.

“Or could it be you're avoiding the fact that you've got no one to be with today and nothing to do?”

I rolled my eyes. Leave it to my father to try and ruin any moment of happiness I might achieve…Fine I’d bite…let’s see what he has to say.

“Fine, Dad, you pegged me. I'm a little nervous.”

He gave me a small smile that didn’t seem entirely condescending.

“Do you remember, when you were just a little boy, I'd bring you up hereto the office?”

I looked back out the window and nodded.

“I used to pretend it was all mine to control, like I could just reach down and move all the cars, as if they were toys... pull all the strings and make people do what I wanted. But I guess it's all out of your control, isn't it?”

He raised a speculative eyebrow at me. His voice was slightly amused and non confrontational.

“I should hope I taught you better than that.”

I sighed and faced him.

“You know, Dad, ever since I’ve been with Lana, I wake up wondering, "Is today gonna be the day when she sees who I really am?"…but that isn’t something I need to worry about anymore.”

I paused and the look on his face changed. I walked closer to him and leaned against my desk.

“I didn’t think it was fair for Lana to go into a marriage with me…not knowing who I truly am…so I showed her…I told her every dirty little secret and you know what dad…”

I looked up into his eyes.

“She’s still here. Ready to become Mrs. Luthor and you don’t know how happy that makes me. To know I don’t have to hide anything from her…because she excepts me for who I am.”

His voice was hesitant as he spoke and he nodded.

“Well…I’m very happy for you Lex…I’m happy that you found a woman who can except all sides of you…that is truly rare. I’ll umm leave you to it then and I’ll see you at the church.”

I smiled and nodded. He walked out and I smirked…I know there is something going on with him. I haven’t figured out what it was yet but he obviously thought that I’d never be honest with Lana…and now that I was and she’s still here…he’s starting to get nervous…Good…that means whatever he was working on…he didn’t factor in my having Lana’s support and that meant the ball was in my court…


(Chloe POV)

9:55am

I was walking down the hall’s of the Luthor mansion with Lana and trying to keep my attitude upbeat as I rattled off different ideas to her. When I looked over at her I noticed she wasn’t really paying attention to me. I shook my head.

“Lana..”

“Hmm”

Now that I had her attention I continued.

“Okay, so you have your final dress fitting at 3:00, the limo's picking you up at 3:30, and you have wedding photos outside the church…”

I saw that her thoughts were drifting off again so I attempted to her attention a different way.

“..and naked-male Jell-O wrestling at 5:00. Lana?”

She nodded then stopped and looked at me confused.

“Huh?”

Ah, finally

“Look at me….You didn't sleep at all last night, did you?”

She laughed.

“Sorry Chloe…the baby was kicking a lot last night and I was way to wired to sleep much.”

I nodded. Guess she was excited…

I tried my best to sound sincere and happy for her.

“Well since this is your big day, I’ll cut you some slack for not listening to me.

She smiled broadly and chuckled.

“I think that's a great idea.”

We both laughed and my heart ached but I ignored it. I took a deep breath and let it out before I addressed Lana.

“Okay. What else can I do?”

She looked thoughtful.

“Well, if you don't mind, I hid Lex's wedding gift in the wine cellar so he wouldn't find it.”

I shook my head playfully.

“I guess "personal gofer" falls under the umbrella of "maid of honor." Oh, um, what does it look like?”

Lana grinned.

“Um, it is behind the Bollinger in the cooler. It's a little blue box with a white bow.”

I nodded. I can do this…I can scour the Luthor mansion all by my lonesome.

“Okay.”

“Thank you…Oh and Chloe…I have to run out and check on how Aunt Nell is settling in. I should be back in about twenty-five minutes.”

Have fun with that…

“Okay…after I get the gift I’ll just head over to the church and start helping to set up…”

I saw her smile get bigger.

“That’d be great Chloe…Lex and I have a doctor’s appointment at 10:30 so this just works out great.”

She gave me a small hug and our stomachs bumped into each other and we laughed. She waved and headed out. There was something incredibly creepy about being in the Lion’s den… I walked down to the cellar and found the large walk in freezer. I opened the door went in and started searching. There was a lot of wine here.

“Holy Dom Pérignon. Aha. Here it is”

I heard the door starting to creak and moved over but didn’t get to it before it slammed shut.

“Ah! Crap!”

The door was locked and I was trapped inside this stupid refrigerator.

I groaned and rubbed my stomach.

“Perfect. Okay.”

I picked up my cell phone and called Lana…there was no answer…well this day just gets better and better. What the hell am I supposed to do? My eyes started to tear up. I couldn’t help it. Nothing was going right…and being calm at this moment while I’m trapped inside a huge refrigerator in Lex’s mansion completely helpless didn’t exactly give me warm feelings inside.

I opened my phone again and dialed Clark. After a couple of rings he picked up and his voice was a mixture between relief and amusement.

“Shouldn't you be at the Luthor Mansion, arranging flowers?”

I gave a small chuckle that turned into a sob.

Clark’s voice got serious and a little frantic.

“Chloe…what’s wrong…are you okay?”

I nodded to myself and sniffed a little bit.

“That's just it...I am at the mansion, but I kind of need your help Clark…”

His voice was still frantic and I could hear wind on the other end of the phone.

“Where are you?”

I calmed down a bit and spoke softly.

“Downstairs in the wine cellar.”

I heard him call my name from in the mansion and I sighed in relief.

“Chloe?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Clark?”

His voice came out confused the next time I heard it and it made me smile a little.

“Chloe?”

“Yes dufus…who else…hurry the baby and I are freezing in here.”

I heard him yank and then I heard a snap. I shook my head. Only Clark…

“The handle broke, Chloe. Hold on.”

I saw the door being lifted away from the hinges and then he was in front of me pulling me out and trying to warm up my body.

“Thank you so much.”

He nodded but he wasn’t looking at my face.

“Next time you have a craving for a bottle of wine at 10:15 in the morning, go for a red.”

I smirked at him and he finally made eye contact with me and there was amusement on his face now that he knew I was okay.

He started putting the door back together as I spoke.

“Yeah, I’m sorry…I-I know you'd rather be tied to a boulder of Kryptonite than come down here for ground zero of the Luthor/Lang wedding, but I didn't have a choice. It wasn't my fault. Lana hid Lex's wedding present down here, and she asked me to come down and get it, and then the door shut.”

I saw him shrug and he sighed. when he turned around his face was serious again.

“I wanted to talk to you about that actually. I…I wanted to apologize for the way I’ve been acting lately. I know that you have to be here today and if you still want me to…I’d love to take you.”

I looked up into his eyes and gave him a small smile.

“I would…like that I mean.”

He nods and shuffles his feet a little.

“Chloe…I’m really sorry about the way I’ve been acting the past two weeks. You asked me for some time and I didn’t respect that…I…I just made it harder for you and I didn’t mean to. I’ve been going through some stuff and I know that’s no excuse…you need me and so I can’t just disappear on you or go hot and cold…you depend on me and I’m sorry that I haven’t been reliable lately…that’s gonna change though…I promise.”

He chuckled a little and looked back at me with a grin on his face.

“I told you from the beginning I was gonna make mistakes…I’m not so good at this Chloe…I’ve never had a relationship before were I could be completely honest with the person…so it’s hard for me to go from not being able to unload my feelings and issues to being able to…I know I haven’t done much recently to prove any of this to you…but I’m going to try my hardest to start now…”

Clark has never been one with words but his gestures have always made up for that. In the past two weeks though…his words were all right but his gestures have been off…I’ve been barely holding on by a thread lately and I didn’t have Clark there to comfort me.

Everything’s been building up and I really didn’t know how much more I could take. I walked closer to him and he tilted his head and opened his arms. I moved into his body and he held me tight. I felt his sigh of contentment against my body and smiled.

“This doesn’t make everything better Clark…after the wedding I want you to come back to the Talon with me and we need to talk…I mean have a real conversation about what’s been going on with you for the past few weeks…because I won’t go through this again…This is your last chance.”

He nodded and I smiled…


(Clark POV)

10:30am

I was holding Chloe in my arms for the first time in weeks and I can’t begin to tell you how good it felt. I moved her away from me and looked her over. Her face was flush and her skin seemed to glow. I smiled and placed my hand on her stomach.

“He’s gotten bigger.”

I rubbed some circles and when I felt him kick I grinned at Chloe and she smiled.

“He missed his Daddy…”

Her voice was hesitant and it trailed off. My head snapped up and I looked into her eyes. She had never called me that before...I mean we agreed to raise him together but...she's just never used it... I could feel moisture form in the back of my eyes and my voice was a little chocked up.

“I..I missed him too…and I missed his Mommy beyond belief.”

I made sure she was looking at me before I finished.

“I've been lost at the farm without you…not talking or seeing you was driving me crazy…I won’t pressure you to come back home…just know that I’m there waiting whenever your ready…”

She smiled.

“That means a lot Clark…"

She sighed.

"I should probably get going though. I have to go to the church and start sorting some things out there. Can you pick me up at the Talon at around 3:20? I don’t want to go in the limo with Lana…it’s uncomfortable…”

I heard her voice quiver and I rubbed her arms. I tilted her head up to me so she was looking at me.

“Chloe…whatever happens today…you have me…and I have you…That’s enough…it’ll be hard to let her go…but we have to…if she goes through with this then she’s made her choice…and our first priority is to protect you, the baby, and everyone we love from Lex….and….Lana…”

I choked out her name and Chloe squeezed my arm. She nodded but there was a frown on her face.

“What?”

She shrugged and glanced at me.

“I just…I guess I expected more…”

I raised an eyebrow.

“I expected more from you…we’ve been saying from the beginning that we wouldn’t let her marry Lex and here we are and you’ve already given up…”

I shook my head…

“Chloe there getting married at 5:00…what more can we do…it’s up to her now…I should probably get going I should finish up the chores before I pick you up tonight.”

She glared softly at me and her comment was snarky.

“Wait, that's it? You filled your damsel-in-distress quota for the day, and you're just gonna walk away?”

I sighed and turned to her.

“Chloe, what am I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know I just kind of always thought that you’d be the one who’d be able to get through to her you know?”

I shrugged.

“I already tried and she didn’t want to here it.”

Her voice was sarcastic.

“Good job. She's marrying a monster, and she's gonna be trapped in a reckless relationship.”

I gave Chloe a stern look and her face softened.

“Clark…I just want to make sure we’ve tried everything…exhausted every angle… before...we give up on her…”

I looked at Chloe and saw how important this was to her. I sighed for about the millionth time today.

“I’ll try to talk to Lana one more time…but if I can’t convince her Chloe…I’m done trying.”

She smiled, leaned up and kissed me. God she felt good….I hadn’t felt those lips in a few weeks…there soft and they taste like strawberry. I pulled her closer and deepened the kiss. A couple seconds later she pulled away and smiled.

“My hero…”

I grinned and walked her to her car before super speeding home to finish my chores before going back to the mansion to talk to Lana… I'd try one more time to make her see she was making a mistake...and if I couldn't convince her...well...let's just hope I could for Chloe's sake...

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 01:39
Chapter 11 - Part B

Quote:


Chapter 11 Part B

(Lana POV)

1:30pm

I was sitting in the study relaxing and writing in the baby journal that Lex had bought for me when I first found out I was pregnant. I glanced up and was startled to see Clark standing there. I can’t possibly imagine what he’s doing here…he didn’t even knock…Lex and I were going to have to put in better security when we came back from our honeymoon.

“Clark.”

He gave me a small smile that didn’t reach his eyes. His hands were in his pockets and he seemed nervous.

“How are you Lana?”

I closed the book and looked at him closely.

“I’m well…and yourself?”

He shrugged.

“I’ve had better day’s but then again I guess we all have…”

His voice faded out and he just stood there looking around. I wasn’t sure what to say to him because I didn’t know what he wanted. After a couple of minutes of silence he sighed and looked at me. His face was determined and his voice when he finally spoke was stern.

“I cannot let you go through with this... not until you know everything.”

I see what this was about now…it was another attempt to get me to back out of marrying Lex…I swear he is ridiculous. If I didn’t know he was with Chloe I’d think he was jealous. I am really getting sick of all of this and it’s time I finally put it to an end.

I stood up and waved him off stopping his voice before he started.

“First off Clark…this is not your home so I would appreciate it if you didn’t barge in like you owned the place…we have doors for a reason…knock…it takes two seconds but goes a long way.”

He looked shocked by my tone and I continued as I got closer to him. I spoke slowly and deliberately.

“I don’t need you to save me from Lex Clark…I’m a big girl. And for your information…Lex already has told me everything.”

He looked at me disbelieving.

“He’s lying to you Lana…there’s so much he hasn’t told you…About 33.1 about the Meteor Mutants…and his experiments…about kidnapping Chloe..”

His voice trailed off in desperation. I shook my head and my eyes grew cold.

“You’re wrong…He did tell me about it…all of it…”

Clark’s expression turned to one of realization and he stumbled back a bit. I nodded.

“That’s right Clark…Lex came clean…are you shocked? Are you shocked that he actually told innocent naïve Lana what he was really doing with 33.1 and everything else?”

I shook my head.

“Unlike you Clark…some people can be honest in a relationship…Lex gives me something that you never did…He gives me his trust…Even though he was afraid that his secret would make me see him differently he still told me…He gave me the option of deciding for myself…an option you never gave me…So go ahead…tell me I’m jumping into this marriage blind…”

He stood there and he was stunned.

“How could you do this?”

His expression held betrayal.

I never thought I’d see that look on Clarks face…at least not directed at me. I took a deep breath and quietly composed myself…this was it…I’m breaking the pattern right now and I don’t think that anything has ever hurt me this much before…but I made a decision and I planned to stick by it…to stick by my family…and that wasn’t Clark…or….Chloe anymore.

“I haven’t done anything Clark…I don’t know what you’re talking about. Now if you don’t mind I have things to attend to today…I’m getting married in a few hours.”

I walked over to Lex’s desk and Clark followed me, grabbed my arm and spun me around to face him. There was anger written all over his face and I could see his hands closed into fists so tight his knuckles were white.

“What do you mean you haven’t done anything? You know about what he did to Chloe…and you’re still with him? What the hell happened to you Lana? What happened to the girl I fell in love with? The one who was always there for her friends…who never let anyone else dictate her choices…”

I pushed his arm off me and gave him a cold glare. My voice was like ice and by the look on his face it cut through him deeply.

“She loved you…and you broke her”

He moved back as if I had slapped him.

“Get the hell out of my home Clark…and don’t come back…if you do I’ll have security escort you out.”

He gave me one last look. Hurt, pain, and disappointment was written on his face as he shook his head and started to walk out. When he got to the door he paused and his voice was quiet but I heard it anyway.

“Goodbye Lana…”

And he was gone. I clutched my stomach and sat down heavily onto Lex’s chair. I felt tears building in the back of my eyes and I tried to blink them away. It was better this way…with everything that’s going to be happening…distancing myself from them was better than trying to live a lie and pretending to be there friends while I go behind their back…

I glanced at the clock it was 2:30pm. I shook my head and stood up slowly. I have a wedding to get ready for. I left the room and went into Lex’s room and mine to shower. I stripped down and as soon as I felt the hot water beating down on me I let the tears come…I cried for the friends I willingly gave up, for the son who’d never get to know the amazing people I grew up with, and for the girl I used to be that I somehow lost along the way….


(Clark POV)

2:45pm

I walked out of the mansion….and super sped back to the farm. I stopped outside in front of the barn and stood there. I was supposed to be ready to pick Chloe up in thirty-five minutes and I could barely stand up straight. I sped into the loft and sat on the couch with my head in my hands. I felt a sharp pain shooting through my chest…and for a minute I though I was having some kind of heart attack.

Until I realized how stupid that thought was…I don’t get sick…I can’t have a heart attack. I took a deep breath. How could she say those things to me? How could she turn her back on Chloe…on me? I got up and slammed my fist through the wall and wood shattered everywhere. It looked like the wood splintered and exploded.

“DAMMIT!!”

We knew this was going to happen…but knowing it and seeing it are two different things…I just…I can’t believe how cold she was. It was like looking at an extension of Lex…I’ve been saying all along that Lana has already made her choice but obviously I hadn’t believed what I was saying because if I did this wouldn’t be such a shock.

I was going to have to tell Chloe…I was going to have to be the one to break her heart again…to tell her the girl that she has considered a sister for the past few years…knew all about what happened her and has been working with Lex for god knows how long…


I shook my head and tried to calm my self…I had to tell Chloe but I wasn’t going to do it until after the wedding…Today’s the day I said I’d come clean with her…that includes telling her about Lana….


(Chloe POV)

3:15pm

There was a knock on the door and I called out from the bathroom.

“It’s open…come in Clark.”

I heard the door open and close. I came out of the bathroom and he had a strange look on his face but when he saw me he smiled. It didn’t reach his eyes.

“You look beautiful Chloe.”

I grinned.

“Thanks. You don’t look to bad yourself.”

I came over and kissed him. He kissed me back but not as thoroughly as he usually did. I moved away from him and looked into his face.

“What’s wrong Clark?”

He looked at me and I could see the pain in his eyes.

“We’ll talk about it later when we get back from the wedding.”

I frowned.

“But Clark...”

He shook his head and his voice was firm but soft.

“No. Chloe for once…just please…I promise to tell you everything when we come back here tonight…but for now…let’s just try to enjoy tonight as much as we can…okay?”

His voice was scratchy and his body seemed tired. I took in a deep breath. His conversation with Lana must not have gone the way he expected it to… I nodded and rubbed his arm. I got my jacket, which Clark helped me get into…quite the gentleman I have… and we started to walk out when he stopped me. I turned and faced him and I could see he was struggling with something.

“Chloe…I love you…so much…and I know I don’t say that nearly enough…so I just…I needed you to know that. And even though we’ve been fighting lately…you and…our son…are the most important people to me…and I’m here for you…”

I looked at him closely and stood there for a couple of minutes. He was making me nervous…what in the world could have possibly happened with Lana that would make Clark this unhinged…I swallowed heavily…well he obviously needed to get that out so I smiled as best I could and grabbed his hand.

“I love you to Clark…more than you know…and I’m here for you also…whenever you need to talk…which will be tonight…just so you know…”

I saw a smile form on his face. Bingo! That’s what I was going for. We went downstairs and he helped me into his truck. He got in and we left for what The Planet was calling…The Wedding Of The Centaury.


(Lex POV)

3:55pm

Crap! I’m getting married in about an hour and I left Lana’s wedding present at the mansion… I shook my head. I don’t know where I was today…I walked into the study and found Lana sitting in her white silk robe by the fire place…What is she doing here? She should already be at the church. My voice was hesitant when I spoke…oh god…she’s not changing her mind is she? I don’t know what I’d do if she left now…

“Lana…?”

Her body shifted and she turned to me. She looked sad but when her eyes landed on me I saw her face brighten up and some of the worry I had vanished.

“What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at the church with Nell getting ready?”

She stood up and walked over to me with a hand over her protruding stomach.

“Sorry…I’m running a little behind. I wasn’t feeling well a little while ago so I decided to shower and then just a few minutes before you came in I was coming in here to get something and I had the worst wave of nausea hit me and I needed to sit down.”

I frowned and moved over so I could brush my hand against her arm.

“Are you alright now? Do you need anything?”

She smiled.

“I’m okay now…I think it was just one of those passing things…but actually I missed the Limo…so if you could give me a lift to the Church that’d be great…I didn’t even need to change because I dress is already there.”

I grinned.

“Of course Lana…I just need to grab something real quick.”

She gave me an appraising look and then her face flashed panic.

“Why are you here? You’re not….back out are you because Lex….I swear if you leave me at this alter I’ll hunt you down and you’ll wish you’d never met me…”

Her voice was only half serious and I gave a hearty laugh.

“Of course not…what would make you think a crazy thing like that Lana? I ran out of here so quickly this morning that I forgot your wedding present...”

I reached into a draw, pulled out the small box and showed her. Her face seemed to relax and she nodded.

“Oh…well I have yours so let’s get this show on the road.”

I smiled. I lead her out to my car helped her get in and we sped off to the church. Okay maybe I didn’t exactly speed…but give me a brake my soon to be wife was 25 weeks pregnant…and when I’m in my cars I seem to be accident prone…so it’s better to be safe than sorry… I glanced at her and she saw me out of the corner of her eye. She smiled and squeezed my hand…this was it…today was going to be the happiest day of my life…


(Lana POV)

4:55pm

I could hear the processional music start to play and I readied myself at the front doors of the church. I took a deep breath. This is it…when I walk down this isle to Lex…there is no going back and I’ve made my peace with that. I spent the whole day going back and forth with my emotions…but not anymore I’m about to become a Luthor…and Luthor’s don’t waver in there choices…neither will I.

I held my head high and smiled at Lex from where I stood. I saw a grin break out on his face. Chloe was standing to his left and she looked a bit pale. She doesn’t want me to marry Lex and yet she’s standing here for my benefit…I’m sorry that I couldn’t be as good as a friend to her as she is to me…because tonight before we left for our honeymoon…Lex would put the final step of his plan into action…and I’d be by his side helping him do it…

I slowly made my way down the aisle and heads turned. I saw Clark sitting in on of the front rows as close to Chloe as he could get…Pathetic…no worries he wouldn’t be able to save her…not this time… I made it to the down the aisle and stood in front of the priest facing Lex as he began to speak addressing Lex first.

“Do you, Alexander Luthor, take Lana Lang to be your wife in the holy state of matrimony? Do you promise to love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, and forsaking all others, as long as you both shall live?”

He looked at me and I could see the love shinning on his face…I felt cherished. He didn’t hesitate or waver just looked me right in the eyes and spoke deeply and emotionally.

“I do.”

I smiled and he reached over and put the band on my finger. I could feel the cold metal touch my skin and the band felt weighted when it was finally on my finger…like I could feel the weight of my decision…and I smiled…I can handle the consequences as long as Lex is by my side… The priest then addressed me.

“And do you, Lana Lang, take Alexander Luthor to be your husband in the holy state of matrimony? Do you promise to love him, comfort him, honor, and keep him, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, and forsaking all others, as long as you both shall live?”

I glanced out into the audience and my face fell on Clark’s…there was a glimmer there when he saw me look at him…a glimmer of hope that I wouldn’t go through with this… I gave him an icy look, turned to Lex and grinned.

“I absolutely do”

Lex sighed heavily in what sounded like relief as I slid the band onto his finger. And just like that out of the corner of my eye…I saw Clarks face close up…and the glimmer died out… The priest spoke again present us to the people in the church.

“May I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Luthor?”

As we walked down the aisle everyone was applauding except for two people…I walked down the aisle in Lex’s arms. I’ve never seen him this happy and I grinned…I made the right choice…I’m Mrs. Lana Luthor…and I couldn’t be happier…


(Lex POV)

5:55pm

We walked into the room Lana used to get ready and as soon as the door was shut I grabbed her and kissed her. She giggled and shook her head.

“Hold on their Casanova…we have guest here…let’s save it for the honeymoon.”

I laughed.

“I never thought it was possible to be this happy. How did I ever turn out to be the man who gets to spend the rest of his life with you?”

She grinned.

“You loved me…and were honest with me…”

My smile broadened. I’m glad I came clean with her…things with us would be better for it…

She stood up and looked around.

“I left my things outside let me go get them and we can go.”

She leaned up and kissed me.

“Okay. Mrs. Luthor.”

She grinned.

“Oh, I like the sound of that!”

She laughed and kissed me again before she left the room as my father was coming in. he stopped her in the doorway and leaned over to kiss her cheek.

“Mrs. Luthor…”

He paused and then continued.

“Welcome to the family..”

She smiled.

“Thank you Mr. Luthor.”

He waved off her formality and I shook my head.

“You’re married to Lex now my dear…there is no cause for formalities…Lionel will be fine.”

She nodded and patted his arm before walking out to grab her things. My dad walked further into the room and spoke.

“Congratulations, son.”

I raised an eyebrow but there was still a smile on my face.

“Thanks, Dad. And why do I get the feeling that's not all you came to say?”

He chuckled.

“Good to see the euphoria of your wedding day hasn't tempered your cynicism.”

I shrugged. Nothing ever would…its called caution…

“I guess old habits die hard.”

I saw his facial expression change and he looked at me with pity.

“She's made a desperate man of you, Lex.”

I looked at him and couldn’t quite decipher his meaning. He was up to something I just didn’t know what. I shook my head

“I don’t know what you’re talking about dad…”

He scowled at me.

“Don’t play the fool to me Lex...I wonder what would happen if your beautiful new bride new the truth about her pregnancy…”

My eyes went wide. How the hell does he know about that. He smirked and he nodded his head.

“Yes Lex….I know about you pumping Lana full of fertility drugs…about the lengths you went to in order for her to get pregnant…”

This was getting increasingly bad and I moved away from him….that is one secret I don’t think Lana would take well…she’d see it as a betray and I wasn’t willing to lose her now…

“Okay. You win. Whatever you want, it's yours -- control of Luthorcorp, 33.1...”

He waved his hand.

“You don't have to worry, Lex. You'll know when it's time for me to collect.”

The door opened again and Lana walked in with a smile on her face. She noticed the tension in the room and frowned.

“Sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt.”

My dad smiled and shook his head.

“Not at all I was just leaving…you two have a wonderful honeymoon… I’ll see you when you get back and we’ll discuss this business further.”

He walked out and Lana came over to me.

“Everything alright?”

I smiled.

“Perfect now that you’re here.”

She grinned and I held her tight…I’d find a way to fix this…my father was not going to get control of 33.1…I wouldn’t let him…


(Chloe POV)

6:15pm

As the ceremony came to an end I was standing with Clark and he had his arm around me for support. Lana and Lex appeared at the front door of the church and we were all gathered outside around them. I saw everyone shaking his hand giving her kisses on the cheek and congratulating them one last time before they left for there honeymoon.

Clark and I stood towards the side...glancing at them. As they walked down the steps both Lana and Lex caught our eyes…Lex’s eyes bored into Clark’s there was a knowing smirk on his face and his eyes were cold…Lana glanced at us next and the four of us were locked in a long stare.

I could see disgust in Lana’s eyes as she glared at Clark, moved closer to Lex and held onto him tighter. She had made her decision and she was letting us know it…loud and clear… When she glanced over at me her eyes grew blank and then I saw the tiniest spark of regret before she glanced away. When Lex turned from Clark to me his look sent shivers up my spine…His eyes were dark and lightly amused and the grin he sent my way was the look of a predator…

They got into the limo and as they pulled away Lana glanced back at us one last time before turning and snuggling up to Lex in the limo…Clark shook his head . He placed his hand on the small of my back and led me to the car. It was quiet on the ride home and he stroked my hand the whole way trying to send comfort my way…it wasn’t working…and I hated that he was so upset because he couldn’t make this better for me… I grabbed his hand tight and he lifted mine to his mouth and kissed it before turning his attention back to the road.

I couldn’t begin to explain how much I was hurting inside right now…I didn’t want to have to go up against Lana…not because I was scared of her but because…she was like family…but now…now she has a new family that I’m no longer a part of…Lex was always trying to get to Clark…and now that Lana was officially a Luthor her and I would really be at odds. I wouldn’t let Lex hurt Clark…I’d do anything to protect him and my family

…and I suspect that Lana would do the same to protect Lex and her new family…I didn’t know what Lex was planning…but according to Oliver Lex was building an army…the war was starting… and the four of us were stuck dead in the center of it…And I just hopped for all our sakes that we all made it out of this alive…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 01:57
Chapter 12 - Part A

Quote:


Chapter 12 Part A

(Clark's Thought's)

I was underground at an abandoned base in a large metal cage with one of the largest guys I’ve ever seen. I felt myself swirling around in the air before I was tossed clear across the room into a large metal ventilation system.

Crap…that hurt…I pulled myself up slowly and looked across the cage to him…Titan is what they called him. I was bleeding from my lip and I could feel my body aching. I stared into his eyes and he snarled at me.

“Time to die, Kryptonian”

I held still as he charged me…it was now or never…


(Clark POV)

46 Hours Earlier…

It was mid afternoon and Lois was putting the finishing touches on mine and Chloe’s new bedroom. As I waited for Lois to finish up my mind drifted back to the night of Lex and Lana’s wedding.

After we had driven back to the Talon I helped Chloe upstairs. She threw her purse on the kitchen counter and leaned up against it.

“So…start talking…”

I sighed.

“Why don’t you go get changed and then come out here and we’ll talk…we’ll be here for a while…you should be comfortable…”

I saw the look on her face darken…but she nodded. While she was changing I super sped home and through on jeans and a t-shirt. I was back before she even came out of the room. When she reemerged she was wearing one of my flannels and it made me smile…God she’s beautiful…she grinned at me and sat down.

“What are you staring at Kent?”

I grinned.

“My wife…”

She smiled.

“Clark…we need to talk about it…you can’t keep putting it off…”

I nodded.

“I know…”

She moved over and curled into my side as I draped an arm around her. I took a deep breath and began talking in a soft voice.

“I’ve been pushing you away lately and I’m sorry…I’ve…I’ve been so worried that I’m going to fail you…and I’m…not used to having someone I can lean on…I’m so used to taking everything on myself that I don’t really know how to…share it with others…I guess. When we got into that fight…and I said what I said Chloe…I swear to you it just came out wrong. I was having a bad day and everything felt like it was crashing down on me…”

I stopped and shook my head. She was listening without interrupting, waiting for me to continue.

“You were right though…you should be the person who makes it better when everything around me is falling apart…and you do.”

I held her hand tighter and she sat up a little with a frown.

“Clark…where here to be honest with each other…please don’t lie to me…don’t say what you think I want to hear...”

I shook my head.

“I’m not…when I included you in my little…breakdown you misunderstood why I categorized you with everyone else…you weren’t frustrating me….the fact that I couldn’t seem to keep you safe was what was bothering me…”

I looked down into her eyes and I saw her face soften.

“I love you so much Chloe and I’ve told you time and time again that I’d protect you from Lex and yet you’ve managed to get hurt twice already and each time I couldn’t do a damn thing about it…and I’m terrified that when it really counts…I won’t be able to save you…”

I knew she could hear the frustration in my voice but I didn’t care…tonight was about being honest and for once I was going to let everything I was feeling out…and hopefully Chloe would too…

She reached up and stroked my face gently.

“Clark…that’s why you’ve been pulling away from me? All this…fighting has been about your guilt…your fear?”

I looked away from her and nodded. I glanced back over when I heard her chuckling. I frowned. What was she laughing at? I’m being serious and she’s laughing at me…when she looked over and saw the look on my face she stopped laughing but the smile didn’t leave.

“Clark…you’ve spent all your energy lately feeling guilty…being scared something was going to happen to me…and that made you distance yourself…You do realize how ironic that is right? How were you planning on protecting me while I wasn’t speaking to you? Stalking?”

I chuckled and shook my head. Chloe always knew how to lighten the situation. To bad what I was about to tell her didn’t really have a light side.

“I guess you’re right…but I’m done with that…I’m hoping that you’ll come back to the farm soon…no pressure…I just…I’d like to keep an eye on you now that Lana and Lex are…officially together…I have a feeling that things will only be getting worse from here on out.”

The sadness was back in her eyes and I swallowed heavily. I really didn’t want to tell her this next part…it was going to kill me to see the look on her face…

“Chloe…there’s something I need to tell you…about Lana…”

She looked down and then back up at me.

“I know…you couldn’t talk her out of marrying Lex…obviously since there…you know married.”

I shook my head, angled my body to hers, and took her hands in mine.

“Chloe…Lana knows…”

I heard her heartbeat quicken and the look on her face turned panicked.

“Oh my god…she knows your secret Clark? Oh god….what are we going to do she’s gonna tell Lex…”

I frowned and cut her off.

“No Chloe…that’s not what I meant. She doesn’t know my secret.”

I was quiet for a couple of minutes while I tried to figure out how to tell her and she just sat there on the edge of her seat waiting. I sighed…the only way was the blunt way.

“Lana knows about what Lex did to you…She knows he kidnapped you…she knows about 33.1…she knows why he kidnapped you…and…she still stayed with him. She’s…she’s helping him Chloe…or at least that’s the impression I got when I last spoke to her…”

I saw the horror on her face she pulled away from me and shot up from the couch shaking her head. Her eyes were tearing up and I could see the broken hearted look on her face. I stood up and tried to reach for her but she pulled back.

“No…no that can’t be right…she…she wouldn’t do that to me…she’s…she’s my best friend Clark…Lana wouldn’t betray me like that…you’re lying…tell me you’re lying!”

The last part of the sentence was said in a loud strangled voice. I looked at her with sad eyes.

“Chloe…I wouldn’t lie about something like this…I’m…I’m so sorry…”

I went to her again but she pushed me away and started yelling…I don’t think she was yelling at me she just…needed to get everything out.

“No…NO CLARK! You’re Lying…Lana would Never betray me…not even for Lex…she would NEVER have married him if she knew what was really going on…Never…”

Her voice grew softer and her harsh words started coming out as whispers and I moved into her again and she yelled and then her body deflated against mine…and she cried. I felt her body shaking and she broke down. I moved us over to the couch and she laid against me and clutched on to me like her life depended on it…


I snapped out of my thought’s when I heard Lois’s frustrated voice.

“What?”

She glared at me.

“Smallville I have been calling you for the past five minutes…what the hell is wrong with you today? You’ve been spacing out on me all day.”

I shrugged.

“Sorry Lois…is it finished yet?”

She nodded.

“Yeah…I still don’t know how you managed to get that wall knocked down in less than two weeks but I have to give you credit. The room came out good. You ready to see how I decorated?”

I sighed and got up off the couch. I rubbed my face…thinking about that night…it gave me such a headache. We both talked some more before she cried herself to sleep…it was a very emotional night for both of us…

“Yeah…”

I followed her up the steps and she stopped in front of the door.

“Close your eyes.”

I glared at her but did as she said. She opened the door and led me into the room.

“Open!”

I opened my eyes and looked around. Oh wow…the room looked amazing. Chloe was gonna love this. I glanced over at Lois and she was standing there waiting for my reaction. I smiled wide.

“Lois…this is great…thank you so much…really.”

She waved me off and opened the set of sliding doors inside the room to show me the nursery how her side looked with the nursery side that I put together the other day.

“Don’t worry about it Smallville I did it for Chloe…and for me that girl needs to get her ass out of my apartment and my bed and come back home to her husband.”

I grinned.

“Finally something we agree on…”

She shook her head and went downstairs.

“Alright Smallville my work here is done…I gotta go pick up Chloe…we’re going baby shopping…we’ll swing by with her stuff when we’re done.”

I nodded and she left. My phone rang a couple of seconds later and it was Oliver he started telling me about a lead he got on something going on around here. I saw my mom walk in as I was finishing up my conversation.

“Thanks, Oliver. Yeah, I'll call you if I find anything. Bye.”

She had a newspaper in her hand and her face had a frown on it. She started reading it out loud to me with concern in her voice.

"Police are baffled over a recent string of bizarre citizens' arrests. Numerous career criminals have been mysteriously delivered to stations throughout the metro area, in most cases unconscious. Clark, do you know anything about this?”

I shrugged. No I didn’t and did I care? criminals were being dropped off at the police station…they were being taken off the street…I think that’s a good thing…

“Sounds like some bad guys have finally been brought to justice.”

She looked over at me and sighed. She shook her head at me her frown deepening.

“Well, some of them were hurt pretty badly. That sounds like a little more than justice.”

I shrugged . I got a glass of juice as I spoke to her my voice uncaring.

“They were meteor-infected and put up a fight.”

When she spoke again her voice was quiet and concerned.

“What if it had been Chloe, Clark? She’s Meteor infected…does that give people the right to hurt her like they’ve hurt these people?”

I turned around and glared in my mother’s direction.

“Don’t say stuff like that mom. Chloe’s different she might be Meteor infected but she’s not a criminal and as long as I’m around she never will be…”

“I know you're trying to help, but you can't go about it this way. It's -- it's not right.”

I was getting frustrated with this conversation.

“You know what's not right, mom, is staying here and doing nothing when I could be out there making a difference. Now, I got to go. Oliver gave me a tip. I got to follow up on it.”

Her voice stopped me and I turned to face her.

“Clark... I know how difficult Lex and Lana's wedding has been for you and Chloe, and I know you’ve been spending all your free time trying to find out what he has planned for Chloe…but ever since that day, it's like you've become another person.”

I shook my head.

“Why? Because I'm not blinded to what’s going on with Lex and Lana anymore? That I’m finally trying to do something to stop them instead of sitting around waiting for the other shoe to fall?”

I heard my mom sigh again.

“I have to go…I’ve got to get on this information…I’ll see you later mom..”

And I walked out. I know my mom was just trying to help…but she needed to let Chloe and I deal with this in our own way…we were doing what we had to do in order to be ready for whatever Lex…and Lana were going to throw at us next…


(Chloe POV)

I had just gotten to The Daily Planet about ten minutes before I felt a huge gust of wind rush by me. I turned and there was Clark. He smiled at me but it was tight.

“Hey.”

“Hi…I thought you and Lois were going baby shopping?”

I laughed.

“We did when we left the store since we were already in Metropolis I told her to drop me off here and I’d have you pick me up later.”

He nodded. He leaned over and gave me a kiss then sat down in one of the chairs by my desk.

“Oh…well…can you do me a favor?”

I shook my head. Clark and his favors… I quirked my eyebrow and smirked in his direction.

“I don’t know…what do I get out of it?”

He glanced up with a grin on his face while he waggled his eyebrows at me.

“How bout a night alone and uninterrupted with your husband?”

I chuckled.

“Pifft…that would be something you want…”

He gave me his best-hurt look.

“Jeez Chloe way to shoot a guy down…but while we’re on the subject…I have been feeling kind of…neglected in certain areas…”

I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

“You can’t say it can you?”

He looked over my head then back at me.

“Say what?”

“Clark we’re married…and if you can’t open you’re mouth and actually say you want to sleep with me…then I refuse to. You’re a big boy now…you can say that…Go ahead…come on Clark…say it.”

I saw his face turn somewhat red and I laughed. His voice came out whinny.

“Chloe…”

“Nope…Clark I swear…I’ll never sleep with you again if you don’t just grow up and say it.”

He gave me a frustrated sigh.

“Fine…I miss you Chloe…and I want…to make love to you…okay their now can we stop talking about this?”

I grinned.

“You are such…a baby. I really don’t know what the big deal is…it’s okay for you to want me…I want you too.”

He looked up and the grin was back. He pulled me over to him so I was between his legs.

“Yea?”

I nodded and had my hands against his legs.

“But…I mean…it’s not that I haven’t wanted to its just…Clark…”

I trailed off and spoke in a childish voice.

“I’m so fat! I can’t be naked in front of you when I look this gross…”

I had my head down and I could hear his soft chuckles and I hit him.

“Stop laughing! I’m being serious!”

I glared at him and he looked at me.

“I know…and that’s why it’s so funny…Chloe you have no idea how attractive you are like this…seriously I think you’re gorgeous…”

I smiled…then rolled my eyes.

“Okay..okay Casanova…you came here for a favor didn’t you?”

He smiled.

“Yes…you’re not off the hook with this discussion but yea I did. Oliver called me earlier and gave me a website to check out. he said something was up around here and he thought I might want to look into it.”

I nodded and moved away from him as he gave me the website. I typed in the website and password and a live video feed come up on the computer. I frowned at the screen. Oh my god…it was some kind of Meteor Freak fight club.

“Clark can you believe this? A krypto fight club on the internet? How come nobody else knows about this?”

He was leaning over my shoulder watching. His voice was hard.

“According to Oliver, getting the link and the password costs more than most people make in a year.”

I heard cheering and applause on the screen so I turned back to look at it. As we finished watching it this huge guy…

I think the feed said his name was Titan, ended the fight by sliding a huge blade out of his armband and plunging a knife into his opponents back.

“Clark, he just killed that guy.”

He shook his head and his voice was tight when he spoke. I could almost feel the tension coming off of him. I started trying to trace where the video originated that way we could find out who was behind this.

“Chloe, I need you to trace the link back to the source.”

“I'm trying, but they're bouncing it off about a billion different proxy servers. I mean, whoever's running this operation made sure that no one would be able to find him. Didn't Oliver and your superpals give you anything else?”

He shook his head and moved away from the back of my chair. He came and stood in front of me with his arms crossed over his chest.

“It was a short conversation, Chloe. I was kind of busy this morning. All he said was he thought the location was somewhere nearby.”

I nodded.

“The security on this stream is off the charts. I mean, I can't record it, I can't download it. I can't...”

There was more clapping and an announcers voice started to speak, which made Clark, and I turn our attention back to the computer.

“ Hey, hey, fight fans! Your winner and still undisputed champion... the one, the only... Titan!”

Clark was squinting at the screen and he pointed.

“Freeze that frame. What is that?”

I glanced at the close-up of Titan. There was a clearly visible tattoo that looked like Kryptonian symbols to me…

“Clark…is that Kryptonian?”

He nodded his head and his voice seemed strained.

“It's a prison tattoo. Chloe, Titan isn't meteor-infected. He's from the Phantom Zone.”

Clark shook his head.

“I gotta go…see what I can find out about this. Will you keep looking into it for me?”

I gave him a small smile.

“Most defiantly.”

He leaned down and kissed me.

“But you’ll look into it from here…at your desk right?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Yes. Clark…no running around chasing bad guys for this sidekick…at least not for another few months.”

I grinned and he looked up at the sky then back at me.

“What am I gonna do with you Chloe?”

He kissed me again.

“And by the way…you’re not my sidekick…you’re my partner in crime…”

He grinned and super sped away. I smiled and shook my head. He’s nuts…but I love him despite his craziness…


(Lana POV)

Lex and I have been back from our honeymoon for about three days now and things have been winding down from the chaos of the last few weeks. I was sitting in the study at his desk watching him over a live feed on the computer.

He wanted me to be apart of what was going on but he didn’t want me there at the moment because he didn’t want to take the chance that any of the Meteor freaks got lose and tried to hurt me…so thus the video feed. I was looking at him and he glanced into the camera.

“Can you hear me okay Lana?”

I smiled.

“Loud and clear Lex. What are we dealing with today? Is this the patient you were telling me about?”

He nodded.

“Yes…remember we gave her the first does of the serum before we left on our honeymoon?”

“I remember. How is it coming along? Is she waking up and becoming more alert?”

He walked around on the screen.

“Yes. She is receiving her last does today and should be fully functional by the time we need her. Lana…her power can help us harness all the Meteor infected people…that way we can have them cooperate with all our testing methods…even the more…unconventional ones…”

He looked excited and I chuckled.

“Well good. I’m glad you’re making progress. I’ve been reading over all the files you gave me on Chloe and I saw here that you were mixing something in with her prenatal vitamins…you’re not…hurting the baby…are you?”

My voice was hesitant and I saw him move the feed into a close up by his face. He spoke softly.

“Absolutely not. The serum that was being mixed into her vitamins was to offset the baby’s powers so that we can know when he’s born which powers Chloe got from him and which powers he got from her…nothing else.”

I looked down.

“Well that’s good…do you even know what powers Chloe has?”

I saw him shake his head.

“No…but I know some powers she’s been exhibiting since she’s been pregnant.”

He stopped talking and sighed a paper for someone.

“Well…you going to share? I’m curious.”

He chuckled.

“She has shown sighs of invincibility.”

My eyes widened.

“What?”

“I had someone plant a bomb with a timer in her car a while ago…the car exploded with her in it and she walked away without a scratch…but so far that’s it in the powers department. I’m setting up one last thing…and it is going to involve bringing Chloe here…to me. Lana I am going to need you on board with this one…it’s big and I won’t be able to do it without you.”

I took a deep breath and nodded.

“What to I have to do?”

He smiled.

“You have to convince Clark that you made a mistake marrying me…I need you to keep him away from Chloe…that’s the only way I’ll be able to get to her. I need you to do whatever it takes…Play on Chloe’s insecurities. She’s with Clark but a part of her will always feel like you’re more important to him then she is…use that and make sure she sees it.”

Was he saying what I think he was saying? He wants me to try and seduce Clark? That’ll never work.

I shook my head.

“That’ll never work Lex…Clark won’t betray Chloe like that.”

I saw the smirk on Lex’s face.

“Chloe’s been in a very unstable place lately…and with our wedding and you’re little discussion with Clark…she now knows where your loyalties lie…I can’t imagine she’s been taking it well. Clark doesn’t have to betray her Lana…she only has to think he has…”

I smiled. When Lex first told me about his plan a while ago…I didn’t think it was going to work. But now…I was sure it would. Chloe and Clark want nothing more than to think I’m confused…and that I made a mistake…They’d buy it if I played it just right…and then Lex would have what he wanted and me…I’d have the answers I’ve been waiting for…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 02:07
Chapter 12 - Part B

Quote:


Chapter 12 Part B

(Chloe POV)


I was sitting in Lois’s apartment surfing the web when my cell phone rang. I was so engrossed in what I was reading that I didn’t bother to look at the caller ID. My voice was distracted as I spoke.

“Hello…”

“Chloe…where the hell are you?”

I shook my head and focused on the phone call. My voice had frustration in it.

“Who is this?”

I heard an un-amused snort on the other end of the line.

“That’s not funny Chloe. It’s me…Clark…your husband…remember me?”

I smiled obviously it was Clark I realized that now…who else would call me in such a tizzy.

“Vaguely…what’s up?”

His voice was irritated and I could tell he was trying to keep it in check.

“Again…where…are...you? I came back to The Planet and they said you left over two hours ago…what happened to me picking you up from here?”

Oops…had we said that? I don’t remember that…

“Oh…I’m sorry Clark I must have forgotten…even though I really don’t remember saying that. I’m at the Talon…I…Clark…Clark are you there?”

Before I could say anything else Clark super sped through the door and knocked over my coffee in the process. I shook my head and sighed.

“Clark... slow down. I don't have enough money to hire a full-time maid to clean up every time you decide to blow in.”

He obviously didn’t find that amusing because he went right into why he was here. He made me extremely mad when he got like this. I leaned back in my chair with my arms folded across my chest waiting for him to realize I was not happy with him.

“What did you find?”

His eyes still hadn’t made direct contact with mine and my voice was clipped when I spoke.

“The URL and the password that Oliver gave you are both null and void, which means that the fight-club promoters must be rotating them in order to maximize security and profit.”

He paced frustrated and the room boomed when his voice got a notch higher. He was yelling

“You have nothing!”

It got quiet and he finally turned and looked at me. He looked at my body language and his body seemed to deflate. His voice was dull.

“I’m doing it again.”

I nodded and he walked over to me and got down in front of me. He sought out my eyes and spoke when he finally caught them.

“Points for realizing it this time before either one of us got up and left?”

His voice seemed so hopeful that I cracked a small smile.

He gave me half a smile and spoke.

“I’m sorry Chloe…I wasn’t able to find anything and I’m just frustrated which I shouldn’t be taking out on you…so hi.”

He gave me a kiss and when he pulled back I nodded and mumbled.

“That’s more like it…you big dumb intergalactic traveler”

He smiled and I spoke up.

“Besides you know I always have something up my sleeve. I'm starting to think that super-sleuthing might be my latent krypto power.”

He didn’t look amused.

“Let’s not joke about krypto powers Chloe…”

I shrugged. I turned back to my computer and started telling Clark what I found.

“Okay, so it turns out that our Billy Idol look-alike is actually a meteor-infected Belle Reeve resident. Now, this is the weird thing. After he was killed in that cage, he was returned back to his padded cell. The orderlies found his body this morning.”

He looked thoughtful and then spoke.

“So if we find who got him in and out of the hospital, he'll lead us straight to the fight club... and to Titan.”

I nodded and smiled up at him.

“Already on it. See? Your sidekick isn't completely useless.”

He kissed the top of my head and plopped down in the chair next to me with a sigh.

“Again…you’re not my sidekick…you’re my partner in crime..”

I grinned.

“Yeah yeah…”

I saw Clark rub his hand down his face. He looked tired.

“I'm sorry I snapped, Chloe. I'm just worried that Titan might be a bigger threat than I thought. Your friend down at Metropolis precinct helped me find these.”

He took out a portfolio of photographs from a pocket inside his jacket. He set them down on the table in front of me. They were awful…so much blood. He continued to talk and his voice was strained.

“It's Titan's victims. They were all found between a crater outside of Omaha, where I think he landed, and Metropolis.”

I scrunched up my face and noticed the wound marks on all the victims were the same.

“He left the same wound on all the bodies, and -- and they're all fighters.”

He nodded and leaned up a bit.

“I know why -- the tattoo on Titan's arm. From what I could tell, it said he was a warrior, enhanced for combat. Ever since he's been here, he's been looking for a fight.”

It dawned on me as I glanced at Clark.

“What better challenge for a brawl-loving Zoner than a rumble at a krypto fight club?”

He put his out to the side and nodded before leaning back in the chair. I saw him take a quick glance around the room.

“Where’s Lois?”

“She had a meeting with her editor.”

He smiled.

“So…we’re all alone?”

I chuckled and rolled my eyes. He wasn’t serious. I glanced back over at him and apparently he was very serious.

“Clark…we have to figure this Titan thing out…we don’t have time for this right now…”

He got out of his seat and came over to me. He started to kiss me as he spoke in a low voice.

“We are…were looking for leads on this guy…Chloe…I need you so bad…you know what…”

He moved back for a second so he could look in my eyes as he spoke.

“It’d probably even make my concentration better…”

He was nodding and moving closer and I grinned. We were kissing and right when his hand started to go south Lois walked through the door with a frustrated sigh. Clark shook his head and leaned it on my stomach. His voice was muffled when he spoke.

“I just can’t catch a break…”

I chuckled and ran my hands through his hair. I leaned my head down and whispered to him.

“We’ll finish this later…when all this is taken care of…I promise.”

He nodded and moved away from me. Lois finally looked over and noticed we were there. She came over and started complaining.

“Hey. Can you believe this? I couldn't find proof of the chupacabra in the everglades, so now my editor wants to downsize me. If I don't come up with an article in the next 48 hours, I can say adios to my weekly paycheck.”

Clark and I looked at her without speaking. She glanced around the table and noticed my laptop out and all the scattered papers laying around. She sighed then perked up.

“Is that a story?”

Crap! I shook my head

“No.”

She came over and sat by me. Her look was desperate.

“Okay, look, normally I would be hands-off, but this puppy needs a bone. Please, cuz. I'll owe you big-time.”

I shrugged.

“I’d help if I could but there's no story for the Inquisitor here, Lois. It's just a dead end.”

Clark chimed in.

“I'm sure after a shower and a cappuccino, you'll come up with something in no time.”

I almost laughed out loud…a shower…who says that but I went along with it anyway.

“Clark's right. We'll give you some room.”

I got my stuff together and Clark grabbed my sweater for me and I smiled and waved at her before we walked out shutting the door behind us.

I didn’t mind helping Lois out with her stories every once in a while but giving her a story that involves Clark…not so much…I’d like it if my husband wasn’t front-page news…


(Lois POV)

I watched the door as they left and shook my head. The two of them were so weird sometimes. I sighed and spoke to the empty apartment.

“I could have used a little help.”

I looked down and picked up one of the pictures on the table that I guess they’d been looking at. I glanced at it for a few minutes and then grinned.

"Fr-44. Fort Ryan, hangar 44.”

Guess I had a story after all… I got dressed for the part and took off to fort Ryan…

I walked into hanger 44 at the base wearing a full-length red leather suit. I was just walking in when some chick spoke from behind me. It’s cool…my motto…always have a backup plan.

“Hey, Puss in Boots. Where you going?”

I turned and looked at her.

“Whoa. Hey, my car overheated on the way to work, and I just needed some water for my radiator.”

She eyed me suspiciously.

“What are you all dressed up for, kitten?”

I grinned at her.

“I'm a dancer... at the Phoenix.”

She raised an eyebrow at me.

“Strip club down the road?”

I nodded.

“Yeah. Look, I go onstage in 15 minutes. I could sure use your help.”

Her voice came out curious.

“This place... is a little off the beaten path. How'd you even know we were back here?”

I shrugged.

“My Dad's a General. Before the base was mothballed and sold off, I came here all the time with him.”

She gave me a condescending smile.

“A General, huh? I bet he's proud of how his little girl turned out.”

I smirked at her and chuckled. As I spoke I moved closer to her and smiled seductively. I didn’t stop until we were toe to toe.

“Hmm. Come on... help a girl out? I'll leave your name at the front door. You can watch my act. I do a killer stars-and-stripes routine.”

Her voice was lower now and she tilted her head and grinned at me.

“I've always been a sucker for a girl in boots.”

I winked and brushed against her lightly.

“Lucky me.”

She ran her hand down my arm and spoke saucily before leaving the area I was in.

“Wait right here, kitten. I'll be right back.”


As soon as she left I pulled out my digital camera and started snapping pictures of all the video equipment and the bloodstains inside he life size cage. I turned around with my camera and came face to face with the blonde chick…holding me at gun point…Great…how do I always get myself in these kinds of situations.

Her voice was amused and cold at the same time.

“You're a very nosy girl, kitty cat.”

I took that moment to swipe at the gun she was carrying and through a roundhouse punch before she could even blink. Top that *****…

She looked up and spoke with a glare on her face.

“Pretty nice moves... for a stripper.”

No more time to pretend I gotta get out of here.

“Oh, honey, I learned even better ones as an army brat.”

She threw a punch and we started fighting. I finally knocked the ***** unconscious. As I was standing over her I spoke to her unconscious form.

“For your information, my daddy is proud of me... kitty cat.”

I turned around and now there was a guy standing there with the gun aimed at me. Damn…spoke to soon. He chuckled.

“If you were my little girl, I'd be proud of you, too.”

Crap…I’m in trouble…


(Lex POV)

I was sitting at my desk looking at a list of my 33.1 facilities. Next to most of the locations were blinking red lights that said “compromised” next o it. I shook my head.

Dammit! Granted I had what I needed with me here in Smallville and Metropolis and I was never to far from either but still the 33.1 facilities did serve a purpose and that green arrowed freak was destroying everything.

I heard the door open and saw Lana walk in. I smiled. She has been helping me none stop since we came back from the honeymoon. When she saw I was looking at her she grinned.

“Hey.”

“Hey…I thought you were napping.”

She nodded.

“I was but I decided to come see what my husband was up to…is that okay with you?”

Her voice was playful and I chuckled.

“Absolutely.”

I gave her a hesitant look.

“I was actually just checking on the status of some of the 33.1 facilities…the green arrow and his merry men have been doing quiet a number on them.”

She frowned and rubbed her stomach.

“Well…that’s…disappointing. How many have they hit?”

“Most of them by now.”

She nodded and her voice was thoughtful.

“I suppose you have to look at the bright side…at least while they are distracted with that they aren’t getting into the more important project.”

I smiled. I love this woman. I opened up a feed from one of the locations and saw the green arrow right before he pointed and shot his crossbow at the camera and it went blank…the picture turned to static.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Lana move to come closer to see what I was watching and she faltered. I glanced up and she was holding her stomach with a look of pain on her face. I stood up.

“Lana?”

Her voice was strained and full of pain. She gasped as she looked at me.

“Lex…Please…Please.”

She fell to the ground just as I reached her side. I was frantic. What the hell was happening…what do I do?

“Lana. Lana. Oh, my God.”

She looked at me and her voice was soft and I could here the pain leaking from her voice.

“There's something wrong…with…the baby..”

She was writhing in pain and then I felt her go limp against me. I held her in my arms and screamed frantically to the security team.

“Somebody help me! Someone! HELP ME NOW!!!”

There were people rushing into the study from every direction. I heard someone calling an ambulance but all I could do was sit there and hold Lana. Oh god…what would I do if she and the baby weren’t okay? I don’t think I’ve ever cared about another person this much in my life…oh god…

I felt someone grabbing me away from her and I kept trying to move back to her. I was yelling telling everyone in the room I’d get them fired or worse if they didn’t let me near her. It was a rough couple of minutes that felt like hours. When she was finally loaded into the ambulance and I was sitting next to her holding her hand they took off to the hospital.

I sat there with my head leaning on her hand and for the first time since I was a boy I prayed. I’ve done some terrible things in my life…and I deserve to be punished for them…but Lana doesn’t…she’s a good woman…a wonderful wife…and she’ll make an even better mother. Don’t take this away from her…away from me. I need them…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 02:24
Chapter 12 - Part C

Quote:


Chapter 12 Part C

(Clark POV)


Chloe’s been sitting at the kitchen table for what felt like hours going through file after file on her computer. I was standing against the counter waiting for something…anything. All of a sudden I heard her voice. It had a happy jaunt to it.

“So, how much do you love me?”

I raised an eyebrow and spoke playfully to her.

“It depends…you got anything for me?”

She grinned.

“I think I found our Vince McMahon wannabe, and he has total access to an endless supply of meteor freaks. Meet Richter Maddox, Executive Administrator at Belle Reeve.”

I smiled and moved over to her. I knew if anyone could do it, it would be Chloe.

“How's this guy keeping Titan locked up in Belle Reeve?”

She turned to face me and shook her head.

“Actually, our jolly mean giant isn't in the Belle Reeve yearbook. He must be freelancing.”

I paced back and forth. If Titan wasn’t in Belle Reeve that must mean he was taking people off the street who wanted to fight…that could work in our favor.

“So Maddox isn't just pulling fighters from the hospital, he's using outside talent? If I can talk my way into that ring, I'll find Titan.”

I saw Chloe’s eyes go wide. Her voice was urgent.

“Clark, these bouts are televised live. You can't risk showing people your face.”

I nodded.

“I know Chloe…but what else can we do? I need to get in there. I have to stop Titan…maybe once I’m inside there will be a way I can short circuit the video equipment…we’ll figure it out because I don't have a choice. if I don’t stop him more people will die…because of me.”

I heard her sigh. Her voice was soft but concerned.

“Clark, he can kill you.”

I gave her a hard look.

“Not if I kill him first.”

She stood up in frustration.

“Clark this isn’t a game! It’s not some kind of a joke. You go in that rink half-cocked and you’re gonna get yourself killed! Maybe you should just wait a little longer until we know more…”

My face softened and I shook my head as I walked over to her and rubbed her arms.

“The longer I wait the more people that die…hey…Chloe look at me.”

And she did. Her eyes were watery and I wiped away a fallen tear.

“Don’t cry…everything will be fine…I’ll be fine. I’m gonna win I know it.”

She sniffed.

“How could you know that?”

I gave her a lopsided grin.

“Because I have to much to live for right here to lose this fight. I have a beautiful wife and a son whose gonna be just as wonderful as she is…”

She smiled at me and leaned up to kiss me. We kissed for a few more minutes before I left her at the farm and went to find Maddox.

I was finally gonna get a chance to get my frustrations out…I always had to be so careful not to hurt people…but this zoner…Titan…I was gonna rip him to shreds…


(Lana POV)

I woke up to a loud beeping sound. What is that? I opened my eyes and looked around the room and frowned. What was going on…how’d I get here. I glanced over by the door and saw Lex outside in the hallway speaking to doctor Rhinehouse. I pulled myself out of bed slowly so that I could get to him. I called out and I heard the scratchiness of my own voice.

“Lex.”

I accidentally knocked down a tray of food, which made Lex and the doctor immediately look over into the room. I saw his eyes go wide and he rushed into the room.

“Lana.”

He moved over and held me tight before helping me back into bed. Dr. Rhinehouse walked over and smiled at me before speaking.

“Mrs. Luthor, you shouldn't get out of bed yet.”

Lex nodded with a look of worry on his face. He leaned close to me and I held onto his hand.

“Lana, you just passed out. You're at Smallville Medical Center.”

I looked around and then my eyes frantically searched Lex’s.

“Is the baby all right?”

“Dr. Rhinehouse was in the area and when I explained what happened he rushed here right away.”

The doctor nodded. They didn’t answer my question…oh god….does that mean…

“You're going to be fine, Mrs. Luthor. You just need to get some rest.”

I repeated myself a little harsher then I meant to.

“Is the baby all right?”

I saw Lex look at doctor Rhinehouse and nod. He glanced at me and spoke softly.

“Mrs. Luthor…the baby is going to be fine…we ran some tests to see why this happened and we’re just waiting on the results. It would be best though, if for the remainder of your pregnancy you’re on bed rest. You can get up for four hours at the most per day and the rest of the time you must be in bed unless you have to se the facilities of course.”

He glanced over at Lex.

“Maybe you could higher someone to help Lana while you aren’t around. We want to make sure the rest of this pregnancy goes smoothly and in order to do that you must follow my instructions.”

I nodded.

“Of course we will. Thank you so much doctor.”

He nodded and left Lex and I alone. Lex moved over and kissed me. His face was creased.

“I was so worried…I thought I was going to lose you and the baby…I’ve never been so scared in my life.”

I smiled.

“We’re both fine now Lex.”

He nodded.

“Listen…after all this I was thinking that maybe until the baby is born we could keep you’re involvement with things limited. I don’t want this happening again.”

I frowned but nodded.

“Your right…I can’t still watch the feeds and everything though…right?”

He smiled.

“Of course we’ll get you set up in the bedroom with everything you need and there will be someone with you at all times if you need anything else. I won’t have anything happening to you so we’re going to take every precaution to keep the two of you safe and sound.”

I grinned at the sincerity in his voice. I was so happy to have Lex. We could have lost the baby…I don’t know what I would have done if that had happened…Thank god I have Lex…


(Clark POV)

I got to Belle Reeve just in time to see Maddox leaving through a side door of the building. Before he had a chance to get to his car I intercepted him. He turned his head and gasped.

“Oh! You scared me. Where did you come from?”

I gave him an evil smirk.

“You wouldn't believe me if I told you.”

He gave me a frustrated look and shook his head.

“I've had a long day, so if you're looking to check in, the admitting desk is in the front lobby.”

I got in his face and my voice was hard.

“I'm looking for you, Mr. Maddox. I want to fight.”

He gives me a confused look and then back up. Hmm he played innocent pretty good…but not good enough.

“Oh. What did I do to you?”

I shook my head and gave him a stern look. My voice came out low.

“No. I mean I want to be in your fight club.”

His jaw dropped and I smiled on the inside…didn’t expect that did ya… he chuckled nervously and then seemed to pull himself together.

“Uh, you must have me confused with someone else. It happens. I have that kind of face.”

I glared and gave him a menacing look as I grabbed onto his shirt.

“I know about the fight club. I know you're not only using patients from Belle Reeve. I want in.”

He raised an eyebrow at me and slowly backed away more.

“Owe. Okay, look. The only place I can get you into is this psychiatric facility.”

I slammed him against the car door hard…but not as hard as I could…I didn’t want to break the guy in half…

“Ugh!”

He was breathing heavily and his words came out in between deep breaths.

“You're clearly a very sick person, and you need help. If treatment's not what you're looking for... then I suggest you back off.”

Fine…if that’s how he wanted to play it… I threw him into a nearby car and he rolled and fell off of it. When he slowly picked himself up he reached into his jacket and pulled out a pistol. He pointed it in my direction.

"You're barking at the wrong dog, Jethro. Now put your tail between your legs and get lost.”

My eyes got dark and I grinned at him.

“Not until you let me in that cage.”

I advanced on him again and this time he fired the gun. I caught the bullet in mid air. I looked at Maddox and held it out to him. He moved his arm down and laughed.

“Yeah. Now, you're just full of surprises, aren't you?”

I nodded.

“You haven't seen anything yet.”

He chuckled and moved closer to me with a grin on his face.

“ No, I bet not. Now, I thought with your pretty face, you've never gone a round in your life. But now I can see it in your eyes. Yeah, there it is. You got some fight in you, don't you? Welcome to the show.”

He brought me to an abandoned base and we walked into the fight club arena together. I glanced around at all the equipment and the cage. Chloe would get a kick out of all this stuff…to bad I don’t have a camera. Maddox interrupted my thoughts when he spoke enthusiastically.

“Yes! Hey, what do you think of the name "the Man of Steel"?”

I made a face. This guy was a lunatic.

"Man of steel?”

He nodded.

“Yeah, I give all the fighters their monikers. Trust me kid, it's a name that no one's ever going to forget. I got a feeling about these things. Some people say I'm psychic. Now, remember. Play it up for the cameras. People are forking over top dollar to see these fights online, all right?”

I glanced around…I didn’t see anywhere for people to sit or anything…plus no one was here.

“Where's the crowd?”

He laughed.

“Crowd? What crowd? We don't have a crowd. Can't have a crowd if you want to keep this secret. Besides, who needs an audience when you got 50,000 watts of sound? Check that out. I just bought that.”

I glanced over at all the record equipment. He chuckled.

“Gate! Now, here's how it works. We sell the spectacle to the "high rollers" online. And the noise pumps up the fighters for the fight.”

I glanced around. Fine he can call it whatever he wants I don’t care. I came here for one reason and one reason only…Titan…

“Where's Titan?”

He gave me a disbelieving look.

“Titan? Unh-unh. That's the main event. I want to warm you up with something easy. It won't be much of a fight, but then again, it doesn't matter because all the fans want to see is somebody die.”

I rolled my eyes…this wasn’t in the plan…I’m not killing anyone but Titan…Crap…

“Then who am I fighting?”

He grinned and there was mischief in his eyes.

“Ah.”

He whistled. I moved my head to the side and someone was being led in by a leggy blonde…did I just say that? Chloe’s the only leggy blonde I should be checking out. I shook my head and as the two girls got closer I wouldn’t be surprised if my mouth dropped open. Oh…****…that’s Lois...what the hell is she wearing? I could hear her voice from here. She was pissed.

“Get off me! I hope you like the taste of vinyl, honey, because you're about to eat a fistful of red patent leather.”

My voice was shocked and it came out a little strangled.

“Lois?”

She turned when she recognized my voice and her shock mirrored mine.

“Smallville?”

Oh crap…this was really, really bad…they wanted me to kill Lois…and although I joke about it on occasion I’d never actually hurt her…she’s family. Great…how the hell am I gonna get us out of this one…


(Lois POV)

They pushed Smallville and I into the cage and a recoding of people chanting came on in the background. There was some kind of technician talking to the creepy guy that Clark came in with.

“Stand by on one. We're online... in 3...2...1.”

The guy stood up and spoke in an announcer’s voice.

“Hey, fight fans! Are you ready? Tonight's under card is a special twin match up introducing two new combatants. In this corner, the voluptuous... the vicious... Vixen!”

Nice freak'n name…The fake cheers and applause came on again. He spoke again and leered at me.

“Yummy. And now... entering our arena for the very first time... ladies and gentlemen, please welcome... the all-powerful, the all-American... Man of Steel!”

More clapping. Pifft Clark the man of steel…I highly doubt that…but he got the all American part right…He should have named him the all-American farmboy… He spoke again and directed his next comment to Clark.

“I can't wait. Ladies. Good luck, pretty boy.”


He moved out of the cage and Clark and I began circling each other. I was trying to figure out what to do. I mean obviously Smallville didn’t have a plan. What was he doing here anyway?


“Lois, what are you doing here?”

I rolled my eyes…me this is so more my scene then it is his.

“Trying to stay alive. Punch me.”

He looked startled.

“What?”

Oh jeez this was gonna be harder then I thought….what does my cousin see in him again?

“Look, not too hard, just enough to make it look real. All they want is a fight. So when I hit the mat, Maddox will come back in. We make our getaway.”

He shook his head while we still circled each other. His voice was stern almost reprimanding and I wanted to laugh…but now kind of wasn’t the time. I’d pick on him later.

“I'm not going to punch you, Lois.”

I shrugged.

“Fine. Then you take the dive.”

I heard soft murmuring as I landed a punch straight into Clark’s stomach. I immediately recoiled my hand when I felt extreme pain take over it. What the hell was he hiding under there…a steel plate…**** that hurt.

“That is not just a six-pack under your shirt. That's a steel kegger.”

I heard booing in the background.

This wasn’t going exactly as I planned…


(Clark POV)

“Kal-El.”

I heard my Kryptonian name being called from outside the cage. I looked over and saw Titan standing there. Crap the feed was sill going…I needed to get off camera before we fought. I used my heat vision to take out all the equipment they were using to feed the fights onto the Internet. It went up in flames and everyone scrambled around. I heard one guy yelling.


“ Whoa! Wait, wait. The light feed went down.”

Alarms started blaring and Titan broke into the cage. I saw Maddox try to intervene and Titan threw him across the cage and his body landed heavily with a sick sounding thud. Someone looked down and saw him and yelled out to everyone left.

“He’s dead…Show's over!”

I glanced at Lois. I’d never forgive myself if anything happened to her…she’s the only family Chloe has left out here…

“Lois... run.”

Titan grabbed me and threw me up against the cage. I grunted and just when I was about to get up I saw Lois take a flying leap and jump onto Titans back…

why me….I appreciate she’s trying to help but she’s gonna get herself killed. I saw Titan grab her without even turning around and toss her away to the other side of the cage without even thinking about it.

I listened closely…Thank god…she’s breathing…just unconscious…that kind of works in my favor…is that bad? I saw him advancing on her and I yelled out to him with a hard voice.


“Leave her alone!”

He turned and faced me.

“The human means nothing to me. You're the fight I've been hoping for.”

I shook my head.

“You don't belong here.”

His face got angry and he roared at me.

“You're the one that doesn't belong.”

We’ve been fighting for what felt like hours. He’s kicking my ass. I don’t think I’ve been this hurt since I didn’t have my powers. He was getting flung around like a rag doll.

I felt myself swirling around in the air before I was tossed clear across the room into a large metal ventilation system. Crap…that hurt… I pulled myself up slowly and looked across the cage to him...I was bleeding from my lip and I could feel my body aching. I stared into his eyes and he snarled at me.

“Time to die, Kryptonian”

The blade came out from his arm and he advanced on me.
I held still as he charged me…it was now or never… I caught his arm and we struggled for control. I finally broke free and Titan was thrown to the ground. I promised Chloe I was coming home…and no one was gonna come to this planet and make me a liar by killing me.

“My turn.”

I walled on him. I went into super speed mode and used it to my advantage to pummel him repeatedly. I was hitting all my Lex and Lana frustrations out…if I couldn’t hit them this was the next best thing.

With one final punch that I put my whole body into I sent Titan sailing through the air and he landed on his own blade. He got up slowly and a bit wobbly. I could see the blade was broken off in his chest. His voice was deep and low.

“Good fight.”

After a moment he fell to the ground once last time. I walked over…he was dead. I shook my head and went over to Lois and picked her up. She was still unconscious. I took one more look around and then walked out of the base with an unconscious Lois in my arms…


(Lex POV)

We had come home from the hospital a few hours earlier and I was pacing around my study. One of the people working for me to find out about this elusive fight club was here with information. So I told my assistant to let him in. I was waiting when the door opened.

“Sorry to bother you with business, sir.”

I waved him off and my voice was hard.

“Get to the point.”

I wanted to get back to Lana and make sure everything was to her liking. Before we came home I had the help redo our bedroom with everything Lana could possibly need in it because of the doctors orders but as soon as we got home I had business to tend to.

“We located the fight club, as you instructed.”

I smiled.

“So you have Titan?”

He shook his head and I frowned.

“Negative. He was dead when the team arrived.”
I sighed.

“According to your reports, Titan decimated some of the toughest meteor freaks out there. Now, who could have taken him down?”

He shrugged.

“We don't know, sir. We lost our Internet link right before the team moved in. They did retrieve Titan's body. I think you'll find the autopsy report interesting.”

He handed me a confidential report of the autopsy. I glanced over it and my eyes widened.

“He wasn't a meteor freak.”

He shook his head.

“No, sir. Titan wasn't human.”

I sent him away and placed the file on my desk. Titan was one of those things that crashed with the ship when the Meteor rocks fell for the second time and if that theory is true…then I think I might have an idea of who stopped him… I leaned back in my seat. I’d have to show this to Lana later after she’s rested…I’m sure she’ll find it intriguing…



(Chloe POV)


Clark came straight to me with Lois after the fight. When I opened the door I was frantic until he explained she’d be fine she was just unconscious.

I still wasn’t anywhere near calm so we took her to Smallville Medical Center and after a few hours of talking to doctors and everything Clark took me back to the farm with him. He brought us up to the loft and then plopped down on the couch.

I looked him over. He looked exhausted. I sat next to him and he lifted his arm for me. I leaned on him lightly and ran a hand through his hair.

“You okay?”

He shrugged.

“I guess. Tired.”

I nodded. I kissed his cut that was already closing up and he smiled. He started kissing me and moved me so I was laying down on the couch.

He grinned and started to get on top of me when we heard his mothers voice making it’s way up the stairs. He groaned and I laughed.

“How’s Lois?”

His voice was frustrated.

“This isn’t funny Chloe.”

I tried to suppress my giggles. He got off of me and when she came into view he was sitting by me with an arm draped lightly over my shoulders. His voice was light when he spoke.

“She's pretty banged up, but the doctor says she's going to be all right. She's already started working on her article about the fight club.”

She looked over at us concerned. I saw Clark give her a tired smile.

“Don't worry. She didn't see me do anything newsworthy. I won't be making any headlines.”

Mrs. Kent nodded and smiled at me.

“I'm glad to know she's fine. Hey Chloe, sweetheart…”

I smiled

“Hi Mrs. Kent.”

She looked back at Clark and spoke in a motherly voice.

“How are you?”

His body tensed and I could tell that he didn’t really want to talk about this right now.

“I thought that Titan was the last prisoner I let escape from the Phantom Zone. But earlier when I looked at all the satellite images that Chloe got from Queen Industries…it looked like there’s more out there.”

She nodded sympathetically and I rubbed his arm.

“If there are any more out there, I'm sure you'll find them.”

He seemed frustrated.

“And then what? I don't know how to return them to the Phantom Zone. The only way to get rid of them... is to kill them like I did Titan.”

I shook my head and spoke up.

“Clark... from what you told me earlier when we were at the hospital that was an accident. You didn’t kill him intentionally.”


“That's what I keep telling myself.”

I had a frown on my face. I hated it when he felt like this…he did what he had to do…and I’m proud of him. He saved a lot of people by killing Titan…I wish there had been a better way…but like I said we all do what we have to do for the better of everyone involved. Mrs. Kent nodded and spoke.

“Well, what if it wasn't? He would have killed you.”

He eyed her.

“So I just killed him first? How does that make me any different than Titan?”

I interjected again. My voice was strong and comforting.

“This right here…right now…what you're is what makes you different -- regret, remorse for a vicious creature that would have murdered you and Lois without a second thought? Those feelings are what make you human Clark...no matter where you come from.”

I saw him give me a soft smile. He looked up at him mom.

“I’m tired. I think I’m gonna head in early…you coming Chloe?”

He smirked on the inside and nodded. The boy had a one-track mind…it was kind of endearing… We followed Mrs. Kent into the house and she said she had a late meeting and would be gone for a few hours. When she left I saw Clark look up at the ceiling.

“Anything else? Would you like to through a nuclear missile in also so I have to run and stop that before I get a chance to spend some time with my wife???”

I raised an eyebrow.

“You okay their Clark? You hit your head a little to hard tonight?”

He chuckled and led me up the stairs. We stopped in front of the door and he turned to me.

“So…you’re coming back home now right?”

I nodded.

“We’ll get my stuff in the morning.”

He smiled.

“Good, because I have a surprise for you.”

He opened the bedroom door and I couldn’t see much because it was dark. He moved me into the room and turned on the lights. I gasped.

It was completely redone and bigger. It was absolutely gorgeous. The bed was bigger and had a white comforter set on in. the window had white and blue curtains and there was an area for me to put up my paper clippings and laptop.

It was elegant without being over the top. The perfect mixture of comfort and beauty. The colors were beautiful too. White’s, different shades of blue, and every now and then small accents of yellow or a pale pink thrown around the room.

It fit us both perfectly. I glanced over at two small sliding doors at the foot of the room. I looked at Clark and he smiled.

“What’s that?”

His grin got wider.

“Go look.”

I walked over opened up the doors and put my hand to my mouth. I felt tears gathering in my eyes as I looked over the room. It was a small alcove decked out in Blue’s reds and white’s. All the furniture was a beautiful lightwood.

There was a rocking chair in the corner, a changing table, a dresser, a small rocking horse and random stuffed animals laid all around the room.

My eyes went to a small area by the tiny window and I saw a crib sitting there. I felt wetness on my cheeks as I felt Clarks arm come around me. His voice was soft as he whispered in my ear.

“What do you think?”

I turned to him.

“You…you did all this?”

He laughed.

“Lois helped with the bedroom. I wasn’t sure how to…you know decorate for a girl…considering I’m a guy…”

He trailed off and I kissed him.

“I love it Clark. It’s…I’m just speechless…there aren’t any words for how wonderful this all is. Did…did you make that crib Clark?”

He glanced down shyly and nodded.

“I made the crib and the rocking chair.”

I stroked his face until he looked up at me. I spoke with such sincerity that I saw his eyes cloud over.

“You are too good to me. You’re the best husband a girl could have…and I love you so much Clark…so much.”

I leaned in and kissed him and he chuckled as he moved us out of the nursery. When we finally got to the bed he sat down and looked up at me while I was between his legs.

He had a playful look on his face as he spoke trying to lighten how emotional we both were at the moment.

“Does this mean we get to sleep together now?”

I gave a large laugh at that…he must really be desperate if he’s actually saying it without me pulling his leg.

“Oh yea…my Kryptonian hero you are so getting lucky tonight…”

He chuckled and pulled me onto the bed with him. This was the first time in two weeks that I’ve been able to relax…in Clark’s arms…I was never leaving him again…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 03:36
Chapter 13 - Part A

Quote:


Chapter 13 Part A

(Chloe POV)

I shot up in bed and I was drenched with sweat. I felt rustling beside me as Clark rubbed his eyes and sat up. His voice was clouded with sleep when he spoke.

“You okay Chloe…is it the baby?”

I shook my head. Oh god…I haven’t dreamt about that since I was a little girl. I felt Clark’s hand rub my stomach so I turned to face him.

“No…no the babies fine…I’m gonna go get some warm milk.”

I moved to get out of bed but Clark stopped me.

“No. I’ll get it its okay.”

I put a hand on his arm and shook my head.

“No…I need to get up and…just please…I’ll get it you go back to sleep I’m fine.”

He looked at me for a while before nodding.

“Okay…yell if you need me.”

I nodded and got up. I walked silently down the stairs and into the kitchen. I got out the milk and a mug. While I was warming up the milk my mind drifted back to the dream that startled me awake.

It was March 29, 1995

I ran through the front door to my old house in Metropolis yelling in excitement.

“Mom! Mom! Mom, mom, I want you to be the first to read it. "Long live the Loch Ness monster." By me Chloe Sullivan”

I grinned from ear to ear.

“Mr. Hedgis said it was my best story yet -- even better than the one about the alien abduction.”

I looked closely at my mother’s face and she’d obviously been crying. She looked like she might start up again too.

“Something tells me those aren't happy tears. What's wrong?”

Her voice was soothing but sad.

“I'm so proud of you... my little cub reporter. Chloe, I'm so -- I'm so sorry.”

I frowned.

“Wait. For what? You didn't do anything.”

I saw some men come up by us and speak to my mom.

“It's time, Mrs. Sullivan.”

I glanced over at them then back at my mom. I spoke softly.

“Mom, who are those people? Where are you going?”

I heard her sniffle as she spoke.

“Mommy's just going on a little vacation.”

I gave her a confused look.

“By yourself?”

She gave me a sad smile and wiped at her eyes.

“Don't you worry. Your daddy's gonna take good care of you.”

I was sad and I wanted to cry but I also wanted to be strong for my mom.

“But nobody goes on a vacation by themselves. When are you coming back?”

She leaned in and hugged me and I held on as tight as I could.


The whistle of the kettle brought me back from the memory. I leaned in and pulled it off the stove. I poured the milk into a mug and sat at the table by myself. I sighed. I haven’t thought about that day of my life in years…I wonder what in the world would make me think of it now…

(Lex POV)

I was on my way back from one of my many late night runs to get Lana her craving of the week. I was driving down the highway flipping through stations on the radio when my cell phone rang. I looked at my phone and answered it in a commanding tone.

“I hope you're calling with good news, doctor.”

His voice was hesitant over the phone.

“The patient still denies having any powers.”
I snorted.

“Yeah, well, she wouldn't be the first freak who refused to show her true colors. Keep pressing. I want answers.”

I looked up when I saw a bright flash of light in front of me. I saw a large truck flashing its lights and heading straight for my car. I turned off the road at the last minute and my car spun out of control.

It finally stopped in a muddy field. I saw a person get out of the truck and start walking over to my car. I couldn’t get out…Crap! The driver walked up to my door and I glanced up.

“What do you want?”

The figure smashed in my window and shattered glass all over me. I held my arms up in front of my face so it wouldn’t cut me. Then I saw everything go black when I was whacked in the head with something hard. Why are these things always happening to me? was the last thought I had before passing out.


(Clark POV)

I walked into the bedroom just in time to see Chloe getting out of bed. I smiled.

“Rise and shine sleeping beauty.”

She gave me half a smile and I saw her look over by the window in confusion.

“Clark…why are my rain boots covered in mud?”

She glanced at me.

“Is there something you want to tell me?”

I frowned.

“No. They were there when I woke up this morning. I thought you used them for something.”

She shook her head and it was my turn to frown. I moved over to her and picked up the boots. The mud was still a little wet, which means they must have been used some time this morning.

“Are you sure you didn’t use them Chloe?”

She glanced at me and I could see the look of concentration on her face.

“I…I don’t remember. The last thing I remember doing was going downstairs and warming up some milk because I couldn’t sleep.”


Hmmm that’s weird I don’t remember her coming up right away either…I didn’t bother her because she seemed to need some time alone when she woke up.

I knew she had been having a nightmare because she was tossing and turning a lot before she was startled awake. I’m sure this doesn’t mean anything…I’m sure it’s fine.
I shrugged and tried to be nonchalant.

“Maybe you're sleepwalking.”

I was kidding but the look on her face was somewhat disturbed.

“Possibly last night, but this isn't the first time this has happened.”

And she was just telling me now? I swear…

“Two days ago, I was typing on my computer at the Daily Planet, and then, boom, I'm being woken up by your mom for dinner.”

Her voice was hesitant when she spoke next.

“Clark, do you think maybe something's starting to happen to me, like in a krypto-freak kind of way?”

I really hoped not…not because it would bother me but because I don’t want her getting hurt and her developing powers is something right up Lex’s ally…and now that he has Lana working with him there’s no telling what they’d do to Chloe if she had powers.

She’s a little over seven months pregnant and I didn’t want anything endangering either one of them. Lana has always been hell bent on how bad Meteor mutants were…if she finds out that Chloe might finally be coming into her powers…she might even give the order herself to bring Chloe into 33.1…and that thought scared the hell out of me…


I gave her half a smile and spoke lightly.

“Hey, don't reporters usually deal in facts, not jumping to conclusions?”

She nodded and her voice was soft as she avoided eye contact with me.

“Yeah, I know and I know we haven’t really mentioned any of this lately because there has been so much other stuff going on…but it's just that ever since I found out that I'm a member of the meteor-infected masses, I've been secretly freaking out. Not knowing what my powers are, if I’ll get any at all…if I’ll hurt the people I love…”

She trailed off and I sighed, went over to her and pulled her into my arms.

“I don't blame you those are some scary thoughts…but you don't have to go through this alone, all right? I’m right here…with you every step of the way. We’ll do whatever it takes to figure this thing out okay…Now why don’t we get you two some breakfast?”

I saw a small grin on her face.

“Okay.”

She moved into me and I put my hand on the small of her back and led her down into the kitchen.

I wanted to be reassuring for her…but on the inside I was nervous. I need everything to be okay…because I don’t know what I’d do without Chloe…

(Lana POV)

I was lying in bed awake when I saw Lex walk in. I smiled and sat up but my smiled immediately became a frown.

“Oh my god Lex what happened?”

He put his hand up when I went to get out of bed and came over to me.

“I was in a little fender bender last night.”

My frown deepened. A fender bender…he should have told me right away god he could have been really hurt.

“Why didn't you wake me?”

He sat down on the bed and ran a hand over my arm.

“Lana, you've been dealing with so much lately barely being able to get out of bed and I wanted to let you rest….your more than halfway through this pregnancy and I just want to make sure things keep going as well as they have been.”

I nodded and took his hand into mine.

“Understandable…and I appreciate that…but next time in matters of life and death Lex…you need to tell me what’s going on. God forbid something worse had happened…you have a family to think about now…got it?”

My voice was stern and his face held a smirk as he looked at me.

“Got it.”

I nodded. He moved onto the bed and leaned against the headboard as he laid next to me. I glanced over and smiled. He was already dressed for work.

“What'cha doin'?”

He shrugged.

“Sitting next to my wife.”

“Don’t you have work?”

He raised an eyebrow.

“Trying to get rid of me are we…”

I laughed.

“That’s exactly it…”

I paused for a minute before I spoke.

“So where are we on the project Lex?”

He sighed.

“She still claims she has no powers. I keep trying to explain to her that we already know what her power is but she just seems to ignore me when I talk about anything power related. She keeps asking for Chloe…But the doctors at the facility are working at it.”

I nodded my head. I felt the baby moving around and it kicked. I smiled. I took Lex’s hand that I was holding and placed it on my stomach with my hand over it. He glanced at me with a raised eyebrow.

“Someone wants to say good morning to his daddy.”

I knew the exact minute Lex felt him kick because his eyes got a bit wider and I saw an honest smile gracing his lips. He moved closer to me and rubbed the little bump where the baby was.

“That’s amazing Lana…god…thank you..”

I gave him an inquisitive look.

“For what?”

He looked around and then back at me.

“For this amazing gift…for marrying me, for believing in me, for loving me, for carrying my child…just for giving me a family. You’re the only person Lana who has looked passed everything I’ve done and still loves me…you’ll never know what that means to me.”

I looked into his eyes and could see them wet around the edges. Believe it or not Lex was a very emotional man…he might be stoic with every person in the outside world…they might all see him as a tyrant. But me…I see the real Lex Luthor…

The boy who lost his mother and is just looking for someone to accept him with all his faults and mistakes he’s made…and I do…completely. I’ve never given this much of my self to someone else…not even Clark…
I smiled.

“Don’t thank me Lex because you’ve done the same thing for me and I love you so much for it.”

He grinned and his phone rang. He sighed.

“I knew it was too good to last.”

He glanced at the number on his phone.

“It’s the office…I have to go. If you need me for anything just call I’ll make sure to leave my phone on.”

I nodded.

“Have a good day.”

“You too.”

He leaned down and kissed me before walking out the door. Today was going to be boring just like every other day I was stuck in bed…but at least today Lex had Dr. Rhinehouse coming here to discuss the last stage of the plans with me.

Lex said I needed to be briefed because it was going to be an intense invasive procedure. I wasn’t sure what that meant…but it didn’t sound good for Chloe and the fact that I was taking part in this and not feeling as guilty as I probably should was making me physically sick…even if I didn’t want anything bad to happen to Chloe…

I just couldn’t turn around now I was too deep into this and I wanted answers…If Chloe didn’t make it through these experiments and procedures…I’d be heartbroken, completely inconsolable…but Lex and I would have our answers…and that’s what mattered now…



(Chloe POV)

We finished breakfast and I was moving around the kitchen bugging Clark while he dried the dishes.

“Please…please Clark come on….please…”

I gave him my best pout and he looked over grinned and shook his head.

“No Chloe…I’m not going. Take Lois with you.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Clark Kent…don’t you care about my son!”

He finished the last dish put it away and turned to face me while he was leaning against the sink.

“I know you didn’t just pull that card with me Chloe…and he’s OUR son not just yours. You’re awfully confrontational today…must be something in the water…”

He was grinning ear to ear. I slapped him lightly so I didn’t hurt myself.

“Fine…I know you care…I just want you to come pick up some stuff with me. Clark he’s gonna be here in two and a half months…and…and...we’re not ready…oh my god…two and a half months.”

He must have heard the panic in my voice because he turned quickly to diffuse the major freak out I was about to have.

“Shopping sounds great let’s go Chloe…two and a half months is a long time and you forget I can get everything ready in two and a half seconds…come on let’s go…”

I nodded quietly as he led me to his truck and we drove into town. On the way there we he brought the topic back to this mornings discussion. I really didn’t want to talk about but I knew we had to.

“Chloe, when you blacked out at the Planet, do you remember what you were working on?”

I shrugged. I doubted that had anything to do with it but I told him anyway.

“Just a story about tree planting in Circle Park. I mean, nothing controversial.”

He nodded and I looked out the window. As we drove by a field on the way to town I thought I saw Lex’s Mercedes out in the middle of the mud and surrounded by police. I spoke to Clark with curiosity.

“Is that Lex's car out there? Let's go see what's going on.”

He gave me a look. It was Clark’s “are you out of your mind” look that I usually got when I said something a little crazy.

“Chloe, no offense, but I think Lex can get his own Triple-A. Besides I don’t want him around you…even more so now.”

I shook my head. Like I wanted to go be Lex’s BFF…something was weird about this…we needed to check it out…

“Something doesn't seem right. Let's turn around. Come on.”

He sighed but pulled the truck into a U-turn and pulls to a stop along side the scene.

He glanced around at everything and spoke.

“Looks like the police got here before Lex's cleanup crew could mop up.”

I noticed someone from Luthorcorp answer his cell phone and I brushed Clarks are to get his attention.

“That Luthorcorp security guard just grabbed his cell phone. It's time to perk up those ears super stud.”

He smiled affectionate at me and I saw him concentration on the guy I pointed out.

I saw him frown. I was anxious.

“What is it?”

He glanced at me and his voice was low.

“Lex didn't crash by himself. He had a little help. And whoever it is stole his flash drive.”

Who would want a flash drive? Maybe Oliver was back in town? No he would have told one of us.

I spoke to Clark with an intense voice.

“Do we know who Racer "X" is?”

He shook his head.

“No, but their vision's only 20/20.”

Huh…does that even make sense. I saw him concentrating on the car and then he spoke mostly to himself.

“What's that?”

I obviously couldn’t see what he was seeing so I asked him with confusion.

“What's what? Did you find Lex's flash drive?”

I was looking out the window when I started my sentence and as I turned toward Clark I felt a quick wind rustle my hair and Clark was sitting there with something in his hand. I frowned.

“Did you just –“

He cut me off.

“I found something. It's a button.”

I looked at the button and my eyes went wide. I looked down to the jacket that was around me and it was missing a button…I remembered that from when I left with Clark because I was cold and I couldn’t button it all the way.

“That's my button.”

His face got extremely worried. He spoke slowly trying to keep the worry out of his voice.

“Chloe, either this is some bizarre coincidence, or you –“

I cut him off and spoke in a shaky voice.

“Or I was here last night.”

He nodded.

“We need to go back to the farm Chloe….see if there’s anything there…”

I knew he was right we had to look…but what would happen if we found the flash drive…does that mean I some how left the house last night without anyone knowing it, took Clarks truck and ran Lex off the road without even knowing it…oh god I hope not…if I was doing things without remembering them I could seriously be putting not just me but the baby in unnecessary danger…

(Clark POV)

I drove us back to the farm and after we walked in I started searching around the house for a flash drive. She was starting to get somewhat hysterical and I was trying to calm her down it wasn’t good for the baby.

“Do the math, Clark. The muddy boots, the missing button. It's me. I'm the road warrior.”

My voice was soft.

“Chloe please calm down. Before you throw the book at yourself, there's probably another explanation. I know this is upsetting let’s just see if we find it and then if we do…well we’ll just go from there. But again you need to remember that it’s not just you in that body…the baby feels what you’re feeling so calm down.”

She nodded and took a few deep breaths. I saw her go over to her purse and search through it a bit. I saw her eyes widen a bit and her hand pull out something small. Oh god…that’s not it…it can’t be… Her voice was very soft and somewhat nervous.

“Clark…Can you explain this? Let's face it. I'm guilty as charged.”

She put it down and I saw her face crumble. I went over to her and wrapped my arms around her.

“Shh, shh I know it seems bad Chloe, but whatever you did, you clearly weren't yourself.”

She jerked away from me.

“Obviously I mean…I almost killed Lex, not that that’s a horrible thing but Clark…I put the baby in danger…I put myself in danger…I attacked someone…what if…what if I’m turning into one the Meteor infected people…I mean the bad ones…”

I took a deep breath. I can’t believe that…and I won’t.

“I don’t know what’s going on Chloe…but maybe the thing you…borrowed will have some answers.”

She gave a tiny chuckled when I said borrowed and I smiled. She wiped her tears and got her computer. She set it up at the kitchen table and plugged in the flash drive. It brought of a list of files.

She frowned and shrugged.

“There's only one document on here, and it's a krypto-freak's case file.”

I glanced over her shoulder.

“Is there a name?”

She shook her head.

“No, it just lists an I.D. Number.”

Oh my god…that’s one serious ability…controlling all Meteor infected people…I didn’t even want to think of what Lex could do with someone like that…

“With a serious ability. They're suspected of being able to control meteor freaks.”

Chloe’s face looked hopeful.

“Look, whoever this is, I think maybe…they were controlling me last night…it makes sense right…as much as I hate Lex I’d never get up in the middle of the night and take a joy ride to kill him bringing our unborn son along…that’s just not me…”

I looked at her skeptical for a second even though I wanted to believe what she was saying.

“Lets think about this…I mean Chloe, of all the people in the world, why would they choose you to run Lex off the road?”

I glanced at the screen and read off the date of birth. Chloe’s eyes got that curious look in them.

“Date of birth -- September 20, 1960.”

She spoke next with a shiver in her voice.

“Born in Granville, Kansas.”

She clicked on an icon and it brought up a picture of the subject. She was a pretty woman dark hair older. I heard Chloe’s gasp and looked down at the shock and horror written on her face. I put my hand on her arm and her eyes were glued to the screen. Her voice seemed far away and it came out as barely a whisper.

“Oh, my God, Clark…That's my mom”

My eyes got as big as saucers. Lex had Chloe’s mom? Is this part of what he’s been working on all this time? Oh god…if he finds a way to control Chloe’s mom then he’ll be able to control Chloe…and everyone else who was Meteor infected…

Oh no…Lex was going to try to use Chloe’s mom to gain control of all the Meteor freaks in Smallville and around the world…Oliver was right he is building some kind of an army…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 03:46
Chapter 13 - Part B

Quote:


Chapter 13 Part B

(Lex POV)

I walked into a heavily fortified area of 33.1 and went down the long winding hallway and ended at the only door in this wing of the facility. We had to be careful with this one…she had to be kept away from the other Meteor infected people. I opened the immensely heavy door and inside on a bed in the corner sat Moira Sullivan…Chloe’s mom. She glanced up at me as I entered.

“I want to see my daughter.”

Like I didn’t know that was coming. Every doctor in this place was saying the same thing…she wouldn’t give us anything until she saw her daughter…and that’s why I’m here to rectify the situation.

“You'll get to see Chloe. We just need to take things slowly. The drug you've been given is still in its experimental stage. We wouldn't want your ability to throw you back into a catatonic state.”

She shook her head.

“Whatever ability you think I have is a figment of your imagination.”

Fine she wanted to feign ignorance…I’d play her game and give her facts.

“In your medical file, you claimed you committed yourself because you had the power to control your daughter. Whenever you touched one of her possessions, you could make her do whatever you wanted.”

She glanced around the room and when her eyes fell on me they were hard and her voice was clipped.

“I was sick, mentally ill. Whatever I said was the product of a delusional mind.”

I stuck my hands in my pocket and walked in front of her leaning against the wall. I spoke lightly without menace.

“Delusions don't short-circuit your brain. You can thank your incredible power for that. And maybe -- maybe it's wishful thinking, but I'm willing to bet you can use that power to control others just like her.”

She stood up and I watched her pace back and forth for a minute or so before turning and facing me.

“Whatever connection I have to Chloe is because I'm her mother. We have a bond.”

I nodded. They most certainly do…and I can’t wait to see what a third generation Meteor freak is like.

“You certainly do. You both happen to have traces of meteor rock in your bloodstream.”

She looked to the side and spoke quietly.

“I have to see Chloe.”

I sighed. I’d get what I want one-way or another…I spoke in a friendly voice.

“Of course. I'm not one to stand in the way of a mother-daughter reunion. I just need you to demonstrate your powers for me.”

She sighed and I could hear the frustration bubbling in her.

“There's nothing to demonstrate. I've never been able to control anyone but Chloe.”

That’s probably because she’s never tried…well she was going to or I’d keep as far away from Chloe as any person could be…

“Well, I suppose there's a first time for everything.”

She turned around and looked about ready to protest but her body deflated at the last minute. Good this wouldn’t have to be forced…we could get to the forcing part later for now she’d do what I wanted and that was good enough…

(Chloe POV)

I glanced out the window as the scenery passed up by…or we passed the scenery by. I wasn’t sure which. My body felt numb and I had the kind of headache that feels like someone opened your skull and poured hot lava into it.

After we saw a file on my mother on Lex’s flash drive I freaked out. Could you blame me? Seriously…my mother’s a Meteor freak…and so am I which means it’s genetic and my son was probably going to be one to…The first third generation Meteor infected baby, at least that I know of.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. Clark suggested we go to the institution that my mom was in to make sure everything was okay. I didn’t want to go but I needed to know…if it was true…if she was okay. I glanced at Clark and his expression was hard to read.

He was trying to be strong for me but I could see he was scared. I wasn’t sure what part of all this scared him most…but for me…it was the possibility of hurting the people I love. I never want to be that kind of person I’d die before I let that happen…

I felt Clarks hand on my arm and my eyes snapped to his.

“We’re here.”

He helped me out of the car and we walked into the institution. Clark was quiet for a second before he spoke. His voice was soft.

“Chloe, wasn't your mom catatonic the last time you saw her?”

I nodded and continued walking to the front desk.

“Yes but Clark…”

I sighed.

“Look, I don't often play late-night bumper cars. She was obviously controlling me. The question is why. What could have been so important that she needed me to find that flash drive ”

He shook his head and I could tell the next words were forced from his mouth.

“We don't know anything for sure yet.”

He was agitating me and I really didn’t have the patients for this today. When I spoke my voice came out as frustrated as I felt.

“My mom can manipulate krypto-freaks, and whether we want to admit it or not, I'm part of that demographic.”

He took my hand and kissed it in a gesture of comfort…or acceptance I wasn’t sure which. We got to the front desk and I got the man's attention. I smiled and tried not to let my anxiousness show.

“Hi. Chloe Kent. I'm here to see my mother, Moira Sullivan.”

The man at the front desk looked at me hard and I saw his hand reach under the desk. His voice was hard.

“Did you not understand us the first time? You were asked never to come back here.”

I frowned and Clark spoke up with a frown of his own.

“I'm sorry. There must be some sort of mistake. My wife hasn't been here for months.”

He gave Clark an appraising look. His voice was sarcastic when he spoke.

“Your wife created a huge scene yesterday. We don't want a repeat performance.”

That’s not right…I wasn’t here yesterday. I was at the Planet and then I was at the farm…Clark and I even had some down time and we watched a movie. There must be some kind of mistake.

I moved in front of Clark a little and spoke to the man myself.

“Well, there's no matinee scheduled. I just want to see my mom.”

He shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. His voice was threatening.

“Security's on its way. I suggest you leave before they have to escort you out.”

I shook my head and started moving closer to the desk. I’m not going anywhere until I see my mother…they can try to through me out all they want…I’m not going…I need to know what’s going on…

“My mother is here.”

Clark moves over to the desk and I could hear anger in his voice as he glared at the guy.

“You can't prevent her from seeing her own mom.”

I saw him glance up and the he pulled me aside and away from the front desk.

“Chloe, come here.”

I pushed his arm off and frowned.

“Clark, what are you doing? I'm not gonna let them tell me –“

He waved me off.

“Chloe be quiet…I have a plan…Just wait for me outside. Trust me…okay?”

I looked into his eyes and could see how bad he wanted to help so I nodded. He gave me a small smile and leaned into kiss me. He handed me the keys to his truck and I went outside to wait. I sat in the car with my head leaning back…

I can’t believe my mother has a Meteor power. I just assumed that I got mine from being exposed all those times…I never imagined that it was in my blood. Maybe that’s why Lex kidnapped me…maybe he thought I had the same power as my mother…oh god…what if I did…

Lex would never leave me alone and my family would always be in danger… everything is just happening so fast…and even with Clark by my side I felt so lost and alone…I mean how do you deal with something you know you can never change?


(Lex POV)

I watched as some guards marched Moira down the long hallway and to this room. I have a young man in here with me who is Meteor infected. There was a camera feed set up in the corner so Lana could know what was going on. They brought her in here and when she walked in I grinned at her.

“Time for a little show-and-tell, Mrs. Sullivan.”

She got a nervous look on her face frowned and wouldn’t sit down.

“What do you want from me?”

I smiled at the guy next to me and waved him on.

“Give her all you got, Lowell.”

I saw him rip a desk off the wall and hurl it across the room at Moira. I watched and grinned.

She didn’t want to tell me about her powers…that was just fine with me…but she better believe she was going to show me…or she wouldn’t make it through the night.

She jumped out of the way and as Lowell advanced on her I saw her reach down and grab the pen he was holding onto when she first came in. When she spoke her voice was soft but commanding.

“Stop. Sit down.”

And he did exactly that…I grinned at Lana through the camera. We have exactly what we want…she can control Meteor freaks…not just Chloe which would definitely come in handy but all of them…this should be very interesting…

(Lana POV)

I watched through the feed as the guards opened the door to bring Chloe’s mom in the room. She was a beautiful lady. I saw Lex talking to her for a couple of minutes and when she didn’t cooperate I saw the Meteor freak that was sitting by Lex attack her.

I watched her doge the attack then pick something up and speak to him in a calm but strong voice. He stat down and started at her. Lex looked into the camera and smiled. I was shocked. Any person who could have that amount of power has to be extremely dangerous.

I mean…she could get these Meteor freaks to do whatever she wanted. If she chose not to help Lex I wasn’t sure what we were going to do… just then I heard a knock on the door and I glanced up as the door opened. I closed the laptop screen a bit and spoke.

“Yes Richard?”

He gave me a small smile. He was new here and looked to be younger the rest of the security team. He didn’t seem to be much older than me.

“I’m sorry to bother you Mrs. Luthor but there is a doctor Rhinehouse here to see you.”

I nodded.

“Send him on in Richard, thank you.”

He gave me another small smile and walked out. A couple of seconds later Doctor Rhinehouse walked in. He grinned at me and spoke in a loud voice.

“Good morning Mrs. Luthor. How are you today?”

I smiled.

“Fine and yourself?”

He came over and started taking stuff out of his bag.

“Quite well. Now let’s see how the baby and you are doing this afternoon.”

He checked my blood pressure, pulse, heart rate, and all that good stuff before he started feeling around my stomach. After about fifteen minutes he was done.

“Well everything looks good. Are you getting nervous? 26 weeks along you’re past the halfway point now…no going back.”

His voice was friendly and I chuckled.

“I can’t wait for him to be born…it’s the birthing part that is a little nerve racking.”

He nodded with a smile on his face as he put his instruments away and pulled out some files.

“It usually is for first time mothers. Now…here are the files that Mr. Luthor wanted me to give you. Everything is all there. He wants to try and isolate the gene inside Miss. Sullivan that has her Meteor defect in it. I’m not so sure it’s just one gene though as you’ll see there are traces of Meteor rock in her blood. Low levels of course.”

I was glancing at all the paper work and my gaze froze on one page in particular. Oh my god…is this…is this true? But…how…it’s not possible…it can’t be… I looked up at Dr. Rhinehouse and he must have noticed the pure shock on my face because he a worried look crossed his face.

“Mrs. Luthor…are you alright? Should I call Mr. Luthor?”

I shook my head no.

“Is this right? I mean…it’s accurate?”

I handed him the page that I was looking at and he nodded. When he spoke his face showed pride.

“I engineered it myself. It’s the very first successful one of the bunch. I‘m proud to say that I was the one that figured out how to do it.”

Oh god…Lex hadn’t told me this…or at least I don’t think he did…this…changes some things I mean…not really and yet it did. This was how Lex planned to get me my answers…this is why he was so adamant on letting me into this part of his life…I finally had the last piece of the puzzle…and it scared the hell out of me…

(Clark POV)

I came out of the institution with a copy of yesterday’s security tapes. I walked to the truck and we drove back to the farm in silence. Chloe looked lost. I had no clue what to do to make her feel any better and to be honest I was worried about her.

And this time it had nothing to do with Lex…at least not directly. I was worried about her emotional state and how all of this was affecting her. She’s been trying so hard to keep it all in and I could tell the dam was getting ready to break.


We got back to the farm and I parked. I helped her out of the car and she finally spoke once we walked through the door. Her voice was somewhat snippy but I knew it was just her nerves.

“Well…are you going to tell me what’s going on or you want me to guess.”

I rubbed her arm.

“Calm down.”

I held up the security tape and she frowned and gave me a confused look.

“Okay…”

I smiled.

“Security tape…from yesterday.”

Realization hit her and she grinned.

“Do you know how much I love you?”

I laughed.

“I do now. Come let’s see what there talking about.”

I walked in the living room popped the tape in and played it. We sat there and I saw Chloe walk in.

We listened to her talking to a doctor on the video…

“I already told him. I'm here to pick up my mother…”

I saw Chloe standing there in the outfit she had on yesterday. Her eyes looked angry and her face was determined.

“Apparently, per her doctor's orders, Moira Sullivan's been transferred.”

The man in the white doctors coat wasn’t even looking at Chloe until her voice started to rise.

“Without notifying me?”

“You'll have to ask her psychiatrist.”

“Fine. Where is he?”

“I'm afraid he's out of town at a conference."

“You're lying.”


She started to walk into a restricted area and the doctor followed and called out to her.

“You can't go in there.”

He grabbed her arm and she decked him right in the face and almost stumbled to the ground in the process. The doctor screamed out behind him with a bloody lip. My girl can hit pretty hard…if you’re not invincible…

“Security!”

I took a chance and glanced over at Chloe. Her eyes were wide and the expression on her face was priceless if this were a different situation I might have even laughed. Her voice was soft and disbelieving.

“I can't believe I did that.”

I nodded. Me either…but now we knew what had happened. Her mom must have sent for her…this wasn’t Chloe’s fault…

“Your mom must have sent you to the sanitarium for help. She didn't know she had already been transferred.”

She nodded understanding my thought process.

“So, she had me steal Lex's flash drive so I could find out where she really was. Well, either way, she's sending out an S.O.S. She needs my help Clark I have to go to her…help.”

I shook my head and looked at her.

“She needs OUR help Chloe…you can’t do this alone it’s too dangerous…I won’t risk you and the baby…you’re gonna have to let me help. But one way or the other we got her message Loud and Clear…I’m gonna go talk to Lex.”

She got up and started to protest.

“No Clark let me come…I need to do this.”

I turned around.

“No…when I find out where your mom is I promise to come get you Chloe…but I don’t want you around Lex…not right now…please…please do this for me…”

She sighed and I could still see there was some fight left in her but she nodded. I kissed her and sped off. I would find out where Chloe’s mom is…no matter what…Lex has finally hit a little to close to home for me to sit back and ignore…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 03:55
Chapter 13 - Part C

Quote:


Chapter 13 Part C

(Lex POV)

I walked back down the hall to Moira’s room with a shirt clutched in my right hand. One of our Meteor infected people escaped earlier today and I needed her to bring him back. From what I could tell if she had something that belonged to the person then she could control them. I opened the door to her room and she stood up immediately. She glanced in my direction and spoke quickly.

“I swear to you, I never knew I could control anyone else.”

I smirked. Sure she didn’t…

“Come on. You're more talented than you give yourself credit for. And now it's time to put those talents to good use. This man is a violent psychopath.”

She looked at the shirt and then back at me. Her voice was sarcastic and sounded just like Chloe’s…for some reason that grated on my nerves.

“Good for him. What does that have to do with me?”

I walked around her and leaned against the wall. My voice was calm.

“He escaped from this facility last night. I need you to send him back here.”

She glared in my direction. Her voice was hard when she spoke.

“I am not going to be used.”

Of course she wasn’t…she would do this willingly or I wouldn’t let her see Chloe…simple as that.
I raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her and a small smirk appeared on my face.

“Really? See, I had this notion that seeing your daughter was a high priority. But considering you were able to abandon her when she needed you the most, maybe not. I know what it's like to lose my mother, Mrs. Sullivan. You don't get over it. Bring this man back to me... and I'll make sure you see your daughter.”

I held out the shirt to her. She grasped it gently.

“This belongs to him. Just tell him to come back here.”

She nodded slightly, closed her eyes and concentrated. Her eyes were moving rapidly behind her eyelids and when they popped open she looked at me.

“It’s done.”

I nodded.

“Thank you.”

I took the shirt back from her and walked out of the room. I was working on finding a way to control Moira…so far the first two things we tried didn’t work. When I did figure it out, and I would, I’d use her to get Meteor infected people to come to me…willingly submitting themselves for testing.

I have been wondering if Chloe inherited this power from her mother…if so she’d be more useful then I originally thought and I’d have to change around my plans a bit…but we’ll see right now I needed to find a way through Chloe’s new and improved indestructible skin…that was going to be an issue when I brought her to 33.1…fortunately I think I’ve found her Achilles heel…


(Lana POV)

Lex hasn’t been home in hours, Doctor Rhinehouse left about two hours ago and I was getting restless. I needed to do something. I’m aloud to be out of bed a few hours a day and this was the time. I got up carefully and slipped on my robe.

I went into the study and started searching through Lex’s books for one to read. As I was pulling out one of the larger volumes the double doors to the study slammed open. The sudden noise startled me and I turned around to see Clark waltzing in looking extremely pissed off.

Terrific just what I needed. I can’t even begin to count the number of times I’ve told Clark to stop barging in. I even had Lex change the locks…apparently that doesn’t seem to help. I kept my cool because I had my son to think about I couldn’t just start screaming at Clark…my pregnancy is giving me enough problems without me adding to them. My voice was non-confrontational as I looked at him.

“Clark…I haven’t seen you in quite some time. How can I help you?”

He glared at me and his voice was hard.

“Where’s Lex? I have something to discuss with him.”

I walked a bit closer and then leaned against the front of Lex’s desk. I shrugged in an un-caring way.

“Sorry…he isn’t here at the moment. You’ll have to come back some other time…maybe call next time see if he’s here before you burst through other people’s doors. Unless there’s something I can help you with…”

I raised an eyebrow at him and I saw his fists clench. His voice was cold.

“Where is she Lana?”

I shifted my legs and placed the palms of my hands flat on the desk on either side of me. I gave him an innocent smile and my voice came out sugary sweet.

“I’m not sure I know who you mean Clark..”

He moved a couple of steps closer and I smirked.

“Tell me Lana…tell me what Lex did with Chloe’s mom or I swear…”

I cut him off and my smirk turned into a glare. It was my turn for my voice to be hard.

“Or what Clark? You’re going to hurt me? Go ahead Clark…come over here and make me tell you.”

He stayed in his place and I gave him a knowing grin.

“That’s what I thought…you don’t have the guts to do anything to me Clark…I’m not afraid of you so take your threats and righteous indignations elsewhere. Now get out of my house!”

I turned and started to walk away when he grabbed my arm and forced me to turn around. I glared at him and he held my eye.

“Don’t walk away from me Lana…I want to know where Chloe’s mom is…tell me…now”

I chuckled and pulled my arm out of his grasp.

“You didn’t actually think that would work did you? I won’t betray Lex’s trust that easily Clark. My Jekyll and Hide routine isn’t as fickle as yours. I don’t know where Moira is.”

“You’re lying.”

I shook my head and shrugged again.

“So what if I am…you can’t do a damn thing about it…I’m serious Clark get out now.”

He gave me a hard glare.

“Or what Lana? I’m not afraid of you either…this little change of attitude you’ve had since you married Lex…doesn’t phase me. I came here for answers…and I’m not leaving without them.”

I raised my brow and glanced him over.

“Fine…you want answers? Well so do I.”

I circled slowly around him.

“Tell me Clark what are you hiding? What’s the big secret that you’ve been keeping all of us except a select few in the dark about?”

I smiled and stopped in front of him.

“Does it have anything to do with where you come from? Or possibly what you are?”

He tried to hide his reaction to my words but he was doing a poor job. His voice was tempered when he spoke.

“We’re not here to talk about me…I’m here for answers.”

I nodded and spoke in a friendly manner.

“Okay…let’s trade information…you give me the answers I want to my questions and I’ll give you the ones you want…deal?”

Not like he’d say yes…I knew Clark better then that… I grinned and he frowned.

“Wow Clark hesitation? I wonder what Chloe would think if she knew her husband could find out exactly where her mom is but chose not to because he wanted to save his own skin…”

When his face looked back at mine his eyes were glacial.

“I’ve had about enough of you Lana…when we were dating...you were right…I never did trust you and that’s why I never told you my secret. Somewhere deep down I must have known what a self absorbed backstabber you were.”

He shook his head and for a minute my heart hurt. He continued and his voice got harder the longer he went on.

“I thought I was so in love with you…that you were the one for me and nothing could ever make you think less of me…I was so wrong. I can see now how fake that really was…I wasn’t in love with you I was in love with the fantasy…the dream…but now I’m living a reality that makes the dream pale in comparison.”

I wanted to yell at him for bringing up a past that still gets to me every now and then but I couldn’t…I was too angry. I stood there and now it was my hands clenching into fists but still he went on.

“You’ve done a lot of things lately that will never be forgotten or forgiven…but I think you should take a long hard look around you and see if this is the life you want your child to be a part of Lana…before you cross the final line of no return…”

I gave him a bitter laugh.

“I’m glad you’re happy with your life Clark…your perfect wife and child on the way…”

I looked into his eyes and his face paled when he looked in mine as I spoke.

“Make sure you enjoy it while you still can…Cherish every moment, every look, every single second...because at some point…the other shoe is going to be ripped out from underneath you…and when it is they’ll be nothing left to keep you standing Clark…”

As I finished the doors to the study burst open for the second time that night. I sighed and looked at over at the door. What now?

(Clark POV)

I couldn’t believe she was standing there threatening me. I glanced over at the doors that just burst open and a ragged looking man was standing there frantically looking around the room. His voice came out loud and scratchy.

“Where's Lex Luthor?”

I glared over at him.

“You’re gonna have to take a number on that one.”

He glanced at me and all of a sudden I felt myself being lifted off the ground and tossed across the room. I heard Lana’s voice and although her face was calm I could hear the shutter in her voice.

“Who are you?”

She went to move for the side of the room as I was getting up and I saw him lift her into the air and throw her backwards onto the ground. She fell heavily onto her back and was knocked unconscious. The guy’s voice was uneven when he spoke again.

“Tell me where he is.”

I rushed over to him from behind and pinned him against the wall then threw him into the opposite wall knocking him out. I moved over to Lana and I heard Chloe’s voice behind me.

“Clark, she needs a doctor…we’ve got to get her to the hospital right now.”

I turned around and my jaw went slack. What the hell was she doing here? I could have sworn I told her to let me take care of this.

“Chloe what are you doing here?”

She rolled her eyes.

“We don’t have time for you to go all over protective on me Clark.”

I looked down at Lana and then over to the guy who attacked us.

“What about him?”

She spoke reassuringly.

“I can handle him. Clark, she's pregnant. Go. Now.”

I looked at her like she had three heads.

“Chloe…just in case you haven’t noticed…you’re pregnant too. There’s no way I’m leaving you alone with him. We can call an ambulance.”

I stood up and started to walk to the phone when I heard the frustration in Chloe’s voice.

“Clark he’s unconscious…Lana can’t wait for an ambulance…she needs a doctor now. It will only take you a couple of seconds to speed there make sure she gets help and speed back.”

I knew she was right…but I didn’t want to leave her…and for the first time…a small part of me didn’t want to help Lana… I glanced at Chloe’s face and spoke softly.

“She wouldn’t help you…she’d leave you here like this Chloe…baby and all.”

I saw her face soften and then I saw pain cross it. Her voice was sad but strong when she spoke.

“That’s what makes us different from them Clark…we wouldn’t…Lex and Lana would probably have left me yea…but you and I…we’d help. Now go…please I’ll be right here when you get back.”

I sighed and nodded. I lifted Lana up gave one last look at Chloe and made sure the guy was still unconscious before I sped off to the hospital.

This moment…right now…is how I know Chloe is my reality…she pushes me to be the man I know I can be…to put aside petty things and look at the whole picture…Lana never did that…she wanted me all to herself but Chloe was willing to share me with anyone who needed me…

(Chloe POV)

I kicked the guy a few times because I knew Clark would be back soon. When he woke up I was pointing a loaded gun at him and his eyes went wide.

“What the hell are you doing?”

I eyed him dangerously.

“Believe me, I can pull this trigger a lot faster than you can flinch.”

He looked confused.

“The last thing I remember, I was running on the train tracks.”

My mother was obviously controlling him…which means he had to know where she was…I spoke knowingly.

“And when you woke up, your memory was gone. You know my mother. Moira Sullivan -- where is she?”

He shook his head.

“Lady…I don't know who you're talking about. I was kept in this facility with a bunch of other people with powers.”

He was in one of the 33.1 facilities…if my mom was controlling him she had to be from the dame one right? I kept the gun pointed at him and spoke in a strong voice…stronger then how I was actually feeling.

“Where is the facility?”

He stood up and backed away from me.

“It’s…it’s in an old abandoned hospital on paper mill road…now let me go…”

I shook my head.

“Not so fast…”

I was cut off when he threw out his arms and I was knocked off my feet. The gun flew in the air and landed about five feet from me and I landed in a pair of solid arms just as the guy took off. I glanced up and there was Clark. I gave him a tiny smile.

“My hero?”

But he didn’t look happy. There was a large frown on his face as he put me on my feet.

“Chloe…”

I cut off his lecture. I couldn’t deal with it right now.

“Clark…if this was your mom what would you do? You can’t just expect me to sit on the sidelines while Lex has her…it’s completely unfair!”

Clark gave me a hard look…he was pissed.

“You’re right if it was my mom I’d do the same but I’m not seven months pregnant…Dimmit Chloe!”

He sighed and got his emotions under control.

“Of course I don’t expect you to sit on the sidelines but I also don’t expect you to come out here gun toting and all trying to get information out of a dangerous Meteor mutant! I want to help you but in order for me to concentrate and be there for you I need you to be okay and safe…"

He shook his head.

"That can’t happen if you are forever running head first into trouble. I love how you tackle everything head on Chloe…I admire it really I do…but not right now…run around chasing all the bad guys you want after you have the baby and I’ll be by your side if you need me…but you can’t do this now…not while you’re carrying our child…I wont let you. We’ve both lost enough for one lifetime…we don’t need to lose anything else…”

The last part of his speech was said quietly and I walked over and rubbed his arm. He was right…I was plunging in without even considering the consequences…if I wanted to get my mom out of this then I needed to work with Clark and let him handle the things that I shouldn’t be handling…

“You’re right Clark…I’m sorry…let’s go back to the farm I have some news about were my mom is and we can draw up a plan to get in the facility.”

He sighed but nodded and led me out of the Luthor mansion. I was anxious the whole ride back…I wanted to find my mom…I missed her so much and if she’s controlling people that means she’s awake…and maybe I could finally have her back in my life…in my family…

(Lex POV)

My feet slammed on the empty hallway floor and you could hear the echo of my steps down the corridor. I went to Moira’s room and pulled open the door. She stood up and I glared in her direction. I just received a phone call saying my wife was brought into the hospital by Clark Kent because of an attack at the mansion… My words were tinged with coldness.

“When my pregnant wife ends up in the hospital, that means you've made a grave mistake.”

She looked shocked. Her voice was hesitant.

“I didn't mean for anyone else to get hurt. I just wanted you to suffer.”

I walked around the room. When I turned to her my eyes bore into hers and my voice was sarcastic

“Well, clearly Chloe gets her brazenness from her mother's side. But as meddlesome as she can be, I've actually come to admire her - that's what makes what I’ve been doing to her so difficult.”

She stood up and gave me an icy stare.

“You stay away from my daughter.”

I raised an eyebrow and gave her a small sadistic smirk.

“Oh, it's too late for that…you haven’t seen your daughter in a while Mrs. Sullivan…let me know what you think when you finally do see her…hmmm and to think I thought I was going to have to go through more trouble then this trying to get her into 33.1. I guess I was mistaken…enjoy the rest of your evening.”

I gave her one last look before I left the room. I had people collecting Chloe as we speak. I’d be back to deal with that problem later…right now I had to go make sure Lana and my son were okay…

(Clark POV)

We got back to the farm and Chloe sat down at the kitchen table. I leaned against the wall and spoke.

“So…what'd you find out?”

She turned to me and her voice got serious.

“My mom was playing Simon Says with that guy at the mansion, which means she's desperate. He told me where I could find her.”

I raised an eyebrow…the question is…was he telling the truth or was all this a set up.

“Can we trust him?”

She shrugged.

“Well, there is an old, abandoned hospital on Paper Mill Road, so he wasn’t lying about that…and if I had to take a guess I’d say it's owned by –“

I cut her off and nodded.

“Luthorcorp. It's probably another 33.1 franchise.”

She glanced at me and spoke softly.

“I was gonna go check it out, but maybe you could come with me and take point that way if anything is going on you’ll be there to take care of it?”

I nodded.

“That’s a good idea Chloe.”

I glanced at Chloe and her demeanor immediately changed. Something was going on. She got up grabbed her keys and started to walk out the door. I was so confused. I grabbed onto her arm and she faced me. My voice held confusion when I spoke.

“Where you going?”

She looked at me like that was the stupidest question I’d ever asked her.

There was a frown on her voice and her voice seemed somewhat robotic.

“I have to leave.”

I didn’t let go of her arm and my voice was hesitant.

“Chloe –“

She cut me off and snapped.

“Let me go, Clark. I have to leave town.”

Huh…leave town was she crazy?

“I'm not letting you go anywhere. Do you hear yourself? Leave town…Chloe you’re seven months pregnant…we’re married you can’t just leave town…”

I saw her face clear for a second and she looked confused.

“What's going on?”

That’s when I realized it. Her mom…something must be wrong and instead of wanting Chloe’s help she wants her as far away from her as possible. It’s gotta be Lex…that’s the only explanation.

“It's your mom trying to control you again.”

She took a sharp breath.

“Oh, my God.”

She started to sway and it was making me nervous. I steadied her and frowned.

“Are you okay?”

She nodded and touched her head.

“Yeah, I'm just dizzy. Can you get me a glass of water?”

I gave her a tiny smile and rubbed her arm for a second.

“Yeah. I’ll be right back.”

I came back in and she was standing there holding the lead box in front of me….my eyes went wide.

“Chloe…”

She opened it and put the Meteor rock in my pocket. I fell to the floor writhing in pain. I could see her grab he stomach in pain and bend over a bit. She bit her lip and made her way to the door.

The further she got from me the better she looked. She was still getting sick from the Meteor rock...and we still weren't sure why. I can’t believe that she risked herself like that so I couldn’t follow her…my voice was strained when I spoke.

“Chloe…please…don’t…do…this…”

She shook her head and I could hear pain in her voice.

“I’m so sorry Clark…”

And she left…this wasn’t good…


(Chloe POV)

As soon as I got out of the house and away from the Meteor rock I felt a lot better. I got into Clark’s truck and took off. I sped down the road and drove out of town. I was driving for about five minutes when I came to a roadblock. What the hell is this? They have to move I have to get out of town…

I got out of Clarks truck to ask the two men what was going on.

“I need to get through.”

The first one shook his head and spoke in a deep voice.

“Sorry, Miss. No.”

I waved frantically. My voice as a pitch higher and I was practically yelling.

“You don't understand. I need to leave town right now.”

He raised an eyebrow and spoke calmly.

“I'm afraid we're gonna have to reroute you.”

Reroute me…why? It didn’t look like there were any problems ahead of me on the road.

“What are you –“

I was cut off when I felt something sharp stab me in the neck. I put my hand up and there was a syringe there. Oh god…no…I did it again…Lex…he…must…I…have...to…

I could feel my body swaying and my lids were getting heavy. The last thing I remember seeing was the two men getting ready to carry me to the car in front of me…and then everything went black….

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  07 Dec 2007 04:03
Chapter 13 - Part D

Quote:


Chapter 13 Part D

(Chloe POV)

I stirred. I moved around and felt something soft under me. I opened my eyes, looked up and sitting there next to me was my Mom. My eyes widened and I sat up as quickly as I could.

“Mom? Mom!”

I laughed and practically jumped in her arms. She smiled at me

“Chloe. You're even more beautiful than I remember”

She glanced down at my body, looked back up at me and raised an eyebrow.

“Is there something you’d like to tell me Chloe?”

I blushed slightly.

“Umm…I’m pregnant?”

She nodded.

“I can see that…”

I looked down and then glanced back and spoke in an excited voice.

“Enough about that Mom…I just can't believe you're awake and you're talking. I thought I'd never get to speak to you again.”

She smiled but shook her head.

“Honey, you shouldn't be here especially in your condition...if I had known…this is all my fault.”

I rolled my eyes.

“No, it's not. You needed my help and I’m here.

She was frowning and her voice was self-deprecating when she spoke.

“You're suffering because of what I made you do, just like when you were little.”

I gave her a confused look.

“What?”

She wasn’t making any sense she never made me suffer… I glanced back at her and her face had a far off look on it. Her voice was soft when she spoke.

“Remember when you were 8 and you hurt your hands?”

I nodded.

“Yeah, how could I forget? I had to wear those bandages for weeks. You know, I've never played kickball since then.”

She shook her head sadly and looked into my eyes. I could hear the guilt in her voice.

“You didn't hurt your hand playing kickball. You came home from school, and your hands were all covered in ink. So, I told you to go wash your hands, and instead, you -- you went to play with your computer. I was so frustrated. I sent you to go wash your hands and scrub them till all the ink was gone.”

I gave her a confused look. My Mom would never hurt me intentionally…

“Mom, what are you saying?”

She came over to me and placed her hands over mine. Her eyes were apologetic as she looked at me.

“I found you in the bathroom. There was blood everywhere. You had scrubbed your hands raw. That's why I left -- to protect you from me. And now I have to protect you from Lex Luthor. This man that brought you here -- he knows you're infected Chloe…He’s been doing something to you…I don’t know what. You have to get out of here. I can’t take the chance that he’ll hurt you…or you’re baby.”

She tightened her hold on my hands and her looked turned desperate.

“When you were younger…I did what I needed to do to protect you, and now you need to do the same for your child.”

She placed her hand lightly on my stomach and tears pooled in my eyes. I shook my head. I knew she was right…but I couldn’t lose her again. I couldn’t leave without her.

“No. We have to get out of here. Mom, you can control people with powers. Is there anyone in here whose ability could free us?”

I saw her look thoughtful.

“I’m not sure it’s a good idea Chloe…”

Her voice trailed off.

“Mom…tell me”

I was going to get all three of us out of here safe and sound…Lex would not win this.

(Clark POV)

I was on my way to losing consciousness when I heard the front door open. My Mom’s voice floated over to my ears but I was in too much pain to call out to her.

“I'd love to. Yes, lunch before the meeting is perfect. Okay. Bye-bye.”

I new the minute she hung up the phone because I heard her heels running over to me as she cried out to me. I felt her hands rolling me over and pulling out to Meteor rock from inside my pocket. She threw it in the open led box on the floor and tossed the box into a draw.

“Clark! Sweetie, wake up! Clark!”

She shook me a bit I and felt my strength coming back to me. I opened my eyes and my voice came out softly.

“Mom.”

She helped me sit up and her voice was frantic and there were tears in her eyes.

“Oh, baby.”

She pulled me to her and stroked my hair. I grabbed onto her for a second to steady myself. I moved away from her and coughed a little bit.

“Mom…I have to go…”

She was shaking her head.

“Clark, no you can’t go anywhere like this…what happened?”

I stood up and my Mom followed.

“Chloe’s in trouble…she…she did this but Mom it wasn’t her fault. I don’t have time to explain everything but her Mom is controlling her. She has the power to control Meteor infected people. I need to help her…but first I have to find her.”

I started walking out when my Mom stopped me.

“Clark…maybe you should…”

I cut her off.

“No! I need to find Chloe…I’ll be back.”

And I super sped away. I didn’t matter what it took. I’d find Chloe…I wouldn’t let her down this time…her, the baby and her Mom would be fine…I’d make sure of it…

(Chloe POV)

I saw two guards leading a guy from down the hallway in our direction. This was our chance Mom could have him help us. I came out of the room and started to call for the guards.

“Help! I need help in here, please! Help! My Mom -- she's sick. She needs a doctor.”

The guy looked over with a skeptical look.

“What's wrong?”

“I don't know, but you have to help her please…”

I saw one of the guards rush into the room I ran out of. I moved closer to the other guard and grabbed something from the Meteor mutant next to him and ran back to my Mom. The guard started yelling.

“Hey! Hey! What the hell?”

I got my Mom’s attention by yelling her name.

“Mom! Mom!”

I tossed it to her, she caught it and I saw a faint glow from her hands. She spoke in a soothing voice.

“Protect me and my daughter. Set us free.”

He turned around quickly grabbed the two guards and threw them down the hall. Two more came around the corner and started to fire tranquilizer darts at him. Crap…this isn’t going to work if we don’t have help out of here. He hit the floor with a thud and the headman yelled out to us.

“Stop! Hold it right there.”

I moved my Mom and we started to run down the hall. Oh god…this certainly wasn’t the smartest move…I’m not the most athletic person and on top of that I’m seven months pregnant…have you ever seen a women try to run when she’s that large? Not fun…
I heard my Mom’s startled voice and turned around to see one of the guards holding on to her.

“Chloe!”

My eyes widened.

“Mom!”

She shook her head and her voice was stern.

“Go! Get out of here!”

No…no I couldn’t leave her…not when I just found her again… the guard spoke.

“Take her back to the cell.”

I saw my Mom concentrating.

“Chloe, whatever you have to do, get out now.”

I heard her voice and I immediately started moving through guards to get out of the facility. One grabbed me so I leaned back and punched him.

He fell to the ground and I bent down and grabbed his gun. I started walking toward the exit and I ran into Lex. My eyes hardened and I spoke with venom in my voice.

“Lex, get out of my way.”

He spoke calmly and stood there without wavering.

“I'm sorry. I can't do that. Don't let your mother make you do something you'll later regret –“

I cut him off when I raised the gun and fired several shot’s at him. I saw one bullet hit him in the arm before I was out of the room and in strong arms.

I felt wind gush around me as I ended up at the Kent farm. I stumbled around and looked all over the room. I turned and saw Mrs. Kent standing there. I gave her a confused look.

“Mrs. Kent? What happened?”

She came over and hugged me.

“I’m not exactly sure…”

Her words were cut off by a gush of wind and Clark came through the door with my mother in tow. I ran to her and she held me tight in her arms. God it felt good to be in her arms…he went back…Clark did everything in his power to make sure I was happy and safe and I love him more and more each day for it.

I glanced up at Clark and he gave me a small half smile. I saw my Mom glance around the Kent kitchen and release me.

“Well Chloe…you have quiet the…talented boyfriend here.”

I smirked and Clark laughed as he walked over to me. His voice was tired but happy.

“Actually Chloe isn’t my girlfriend…”

My Mom gave Clark a look and he continued.

“She’s my wife.”

I saw her eyes go wide.

“Well…I sure have missed a lot…haven’t I?”

We laughed and I introduced her to Mrs. Kent. We all talked for a while and then Clark wound up leaving with my Mom to Oliver’s old apartment in Metropolis to keep her safe until I spoke with Oliver about assisting me in getting my mother out of town and as far away from Lex as possible. I wouldn’t let him hurt her again…not if I could help it…

(Clark POV)

I lead Chloe’s Mom into Oliver’s empty apartment. I glanced around and it basically looked the same.

“You should be safe here until Chloe can get in touch with Oliver.”

She nodded and sat on the couch. She patted the couch next to her.

“Come…sit with me Clark. Tell me about yourself…about my daughter.”

I smiled and moved over to the couch. Chloe was something I had no trouble talking about.

“Ummm…well I met Chloe back when…”

She cut me off.

“Tell me about the two of you.”

I shrugged and looked down.

“I’m not really sure what to say.”

I glanced into her face and my voice held admiration when I spoke.

“But I can tell you that you have an amazing daughter Mrs. Sullivan. She is the least selfish person I know. She is hardworking, kind, loyal, and always does the right thing no matter what. She has saved my life too many times to count and she’s an absolute whiz on the computer. I’d be completely lost without her.”

She smiled at me.

“You love her.”

I looked startled at her.

“Of course I love her…is that what you’re worried about? Mrs. Sullivan I am so in love with your daughter. I would do anything and everything to make her happy…and I’d move heaven and earth to keep her safe…”

She placed a hand on me and her facial expression softened. Her voice was reassuring.

“Clark…there’s no question of how much you love my daughter…because I can see it on your face. I’m so glad she found you…I’m glad my baby has someone to love her the way she deserves to be loved.”

I smiled.

We talked for a while longer and I super sped and got some copies of Chloe’s articles from The Planet so her mother could see some of her articles.

As the hours went by…Mrs. Sullivan seemed to be slowly shutting down. I called Chloe twice but there was no answer. Hopefully she’d get here soon…because I had no clue what to do…

(Chloe POV)

It took a while to get everything settled. I didn’t wind up getting to Oliver’s apartment until about nine in the morning. I smiled when I saw Clark and my Mom. I went over and kissed Clark then put the bag I was carrying on the counter.

“Hey! I brought sandwiches. And I realized I don't know which ones you like, Mom, so I just bought one of each.”

Clark’s voice was soft.

“Chloe, I don't think your Mom's hungry.”

I shrugged and faced him.

“Hey Clark, I talked to Oliver. He said that he would set up a safe place for her to stay in Star City.”

I grinned but when I looked at Clark’s face the smile left my lips. He spoke hesitantly.

“Chloe, we have a problem.”

I frowned and looked over at my mother. She was sitting on the couch very quietly staring out the window. I walked over and stood in front of her.

“Mom? Mom?”

She glanced at me and gave me a small smiled.

“I-I wanted to see a blue sky... one last time.”

I gave a small laugh.

“Well, their will be plenty of blue skies where you're going, Mom. You're not gonna be locked inside anymore.”

Her eyes focused on mine and she gave me a sad smile.

“Sweetheart... I'm slipping back.”

Clark came over and stroked my arm. His voice was soft.

“The drug that Lex used on your Mom -- it takes several doses to make her lucid but it only lasts 24 hours. Chloe, she doesn't have much time left.”

No…well we’ll just have to get Lex to give us the drug he used.

“Well, I'll go talk to Lex. I'll make a deal with him."

My Mom and Clark spoke simultaneously.

“No.”

I glanced back and forth between them and then my Mom took my hand and spoke.

“No deals with that man. I can't allow it.”

“Mom, I already lost you once. I'm not gonna do it again. If this drug is out there, I can get it, trust me. I have some pretty amazing resources at my disposal.”

She chuckled.

“Being with you again...”

She grinned and paused.

“It's the greatest gift I could have ever been given. But I'm dangerous, Chloe.”

I shook my head.

“No, Mom. That's not true.”

“My ability to control people with powers, it's like I'm a human weapon. And I-I can't -- I can't allow it.”

“But, Mom, it doesn't have to be like this.”
She touched my cheek.

“My little cub reporter. This... this belongs... to you.”

Tears gathered in my eyes and my heart ached.

“No, Mom. Please. Please don't go, Mom -- not yet, not again.”

Her voice broke as she spoke and I could hear her going in and out of lucidity.

“I... love you... Chloe-- Chloe.”

I whimpered and the tears came cascading down my face.

“I love you, too, Mom”

She didn’t answer me back and that only made my tears come out more. Clark put his hand on my arm and pulled me to him. He held me while I cried. I could hear him whispering comforting words in my ear…but nothing was helping…I lost my mother for the second time…and I think this was worse than the first time. This was all Lex’s fault…he couldn’t get away with this…I wouldn’t let him…


Two night’s later…

(Chloe POV)

I was sitting at my desk at The Daily Planet typing when I heard a voice behind me.

“"Luthorcorp Crimes Against Humanity." That's catchy. Too bad it'll never make it to print.”

I turned to face him and my eyes were shooting daggers at him. His left arm was in a sling from the bullet that caught his shoulder. When I spoke my voice was cold.

“Lex, what can I help you with? Come here to kidnap another member of my family? Or are you here to thank Clark and I for intervening on Lana’s behalf?”

I heard him sigh and he shook his head. He ignored what I said.

“I'll tell you, your audacity's impressive, Chloe, especially given your recent late-night activities and the fact that you shot me a couple of days ago.”

I rolled my eyes.

“You mean the late night activities where I was controlled by my mother who you transferred from a facility illegally and used an experimental drug on?”

He smirks.

“ Tell me, how many years do you get for aggravated assault -- 10, 20?”

I glared.

“For what you've done, they're gonna throw away the key.”

He walked closer and raised an eyebrow.

“What I've done? You don't have a shred of proof about any of this, and you never will. But rest assured, the evidence I have against you is locked away safe and secure. Make that article disappear, and you'll remain a free woman. Deal?”

I took a step forward.

“I’d never make a deal with you Lex. You have been messing with Clark and I for a while now…but you went to far this time. My mother was innocent in all of this…and you used her…brought her back and then took it all away again…I won’t let you get away with this…you’ll pay for it. My mother sacrificed everything to protect the world from scum like you. And if taking you down means spending some quality time behind bars, sign me up.”

His eyes got cold and he was right in my face.

“You know, I thought you might say that. That's why there's a Plan "B" firmly in place... a plan that makes prison look like a picnic. You better be careful Chloe…you wouldn’t want anything happening to you or that baby of yours…your about seven months along now aren’t you? It’d be a shame if something happened…”

I shook my head again.

“I’m not afraid of you Lex…what ever you’re planning…it’s not going to work…”

He smirked and started to walk away.

“It already is Chloe…it already is…have a nice night…”

As I watched him walk out I couldn’t help the bad feeling in the pit of my stomach…something big was coming…I only hoped Clark and I would be able to handle it…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  08 Dec 2007 04:11
Chapter 14 - Nemesis - Part A

Quote:

Chapter 14 Part A

(Lex POV)

Beep Beep Beep…I leaned over and slapped the beeping alarm and I felt Lana shift and groan next to me. I got out of bed, walked over to the closet and started pulling out clothes. I heard the covers rustling and then Lana’s sleep fogged voice spoke.

“Lex…what in gods name are you doing up so early? An even better question…what are you doing waking me up this early?”

I gave a small laugh and turned to face her. She had moved over into my spot and snuggled her head into the pillow. Sometimes I forget just how young Lana is…she’ll be twenty-one in a few months and by then she’ll not only be a wife but a mother as well. I walked toward her and she was pouting, looking absolutely adorable.

“I have to check something out this morning. Sorry I woke you. It shouldn’t take too long. I’ll be back soon and then you and I are going to spend the day out. I already cleared it with the doctor. I thought we could get Lunch in Metropolis and then take the jet on a day trip to do a little baby shopping. What do you think?”

I saw her smile into the pillow. Her voice was playful when she spoke.

“I think it’s the least you can do for waking me up.”

I chuckled. Lana was the only person who could bring this side of me out…when I’m with her and it’s just us…sometimes I feel like a normal guy…and then reality finds it’s way back in. I leaned in and placed a kiss on her forehead.

“I’ll see you later.”

She sat up quickly and called out to me.

“Lex!”

The volume of her voice made me turn faster then usual. I raised an eyebrow.

“Everything okay?”

She nodded and gave me a sheepish smile.

“I love you.”

I grinned.

“I love you too Lana.”

I walked out and headed out to the tunnels.

******

I walked through the series of underground tunnels checking on everything and making sure it was all-secure. I rounded the corner and was surprised by what I saw.

My Dad…this was getting to be ridiculous. I know he had information that could potentially make Lana leave me and that was the only reason I’ve been putting up with his outrages requests and what not. The other day he came to me and demanded most of the files on 33.1 so I had to make him copies of everything…and now he’s here…

I kept walking as he fell in step beside me. His voice held amusement when he spoke.

“Don't tell me I missed the special 4:00 A.M. pre-dawn tour. You know, your current machinations have forced you to conduct business outside regular business hours.”

I looked heavenward for a moment before speaking to him in a sarcastic manor.

“I suppose I should find it comforting that you're still checking up on every move I make.”

He shook his head.

“What is it you find so compelling about these tunnels, abandoned for decades?”

I glanced in his direction for a moment and smirked.

“I'm spearheading a water-purification program. A little research would have assured you it's public knowledge.”

He gave me a look of indignation.

“Please, spare me. How long have you been scouting the tunnels, huh? Months? There's something down here important to you, more important than the approval from a few eco-enthusiasts.”

I chuckled. Good to know he thought so highly of me.

“Don't worry, Dad. I still have plenty of land to conquer above sea level before I take on the underworld.”

He nodded and then spoke with a casual tone.

“And what unknown world will be host to project Ares?”

I stopped short when I heard him speak the name of a project that even Lana was on a need to know basis with.

I have no clue how he does it. Lana wasn’t that involved because I felt this particular project was too dangerous…she was upset but understood. She knows what’s going on in the project though and to her that’s all that matters…my honesty.

I was about to say something to him when I heard a noise and saw some sparks flying from up ahead. My Dad must have seen it to because when I moved up to see what was going on he followed me. I saw a person welding on the side of the tunnel.

“Hey! This is a restricted area.”

The person took off the welding hood and I was shocked to see a women. She didn’t look surprised to see me though. Her voice was tempered when she spoke.

“Mr. Luthor, you're right on time.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“You mind telling me what the hell you're doing here?”

She gave me a sarcastic smile.

“Love to. In fact, I've already arranged someplace a little more private.”

I gave her a hard look.

“You need to pack your things and leave immediately. I'm calling security.”

She looked at my Dad when she spoke.

“Invitation only.”

She pulled out some kind of remote and I heard my Dad yell out to me about something. Everything went into slow motion as her finger pressed down on the button and the tunnel behind us collapsed all around my Dad. I turned my head when he called out to me.

“Lex!”

Oh god…

“Dad!”

I moved back around to face her and I as I turned I saw the welding hood coming at my head and then connecting. I swayed and felt myself hit the ground…dammit…today was going to be a long day… before darkness over took me.

(Clark POV)

The ringing phone startled me awake. I rolled over and grabbed for the phone and I heard Chloe groan. I saw her head pop up and glance at the clock then she buried it back in the pillow.

“Whoever that is should be shot…it’s only seven fifty-five in the morning.”

I gave a small chuckled and answered the phone. My voice was scratchy from sleep.

“Hello.”

“Clark…thank god…I need you to meet me at the hospital right away..”

I sat up abruptly. It was my mom and her voice was frantic.

“Mom…are you okay? What’s going on?”

“Clark just come down here please…as quickly as you can.”

I hung up the phone and super sped out of bed. I blew all the covers off the bed and Chloe shook her head.

“What’s going on Clark?”

I was dressed in seconds.

“That was my mom she’s at the hospital I have to go.”

Chloe sat up and worry was written on her face.

“Is everything okay?”

“I’m not sure I’ll keep you updated.”

I kissed her and super sped to the hospital. I met my mom outside the entrance as Lionel was being taken out of an ambulance. I was confused.

“Mom, what happened?”

She shook her head.

“I’m not sure, they just called and said there was some kind of explosion. Lionel, it's Martha and Clark. We're here.”

He moved the oxygen mask out of the way and his voice was practically breathless. He said one thing.

“Lex.”

My mother gave him a sympathetic look.

“I left Lex a message and said it was an emergency.”

Lionel tried to shake his head and struggled to speak.

“He's still down there.”

The EMT guy cut my mom and Lionel off. His voice was urgent.

“Folks, he has to get into the E.R.”

Lionel grabbed at my sleeve trying to get my attention.

“Clark. Clark. You have to help him. Lex is being held hostage.”

Sometimes I really hated doing the right thing. Lex and I…we’re no longer friends…and we weren’t on the same side anymore. Yet I get stuck saving him every time he’s in trouble and that really pissed me off…but like Chloe always says…I can’t pick and choose who I save…it would make me just like them…

I glanced down at Lionel and spoke in a calm voice.

“Do the police know what happened to him?”

He nodded.

“Yes, but there's no time. We need to move.”

I scrunched up my face…where did this explosion happen again?

“One second. Where is Lex?”

He was struggling to get his words out so I waited patiently.

“They'll never find him, even if they get through the debris. It's a maze of tunnels. You've got to find him, Clark. He's put something terrible into motion down there. Lex is the only one who can stop it.”

Before I could say another word the EMT moved me out of the way and started wheeling Lionel into the hospital. His voice was rushed.

“Let's go. Let's go”

I saw my moms gave following the stretcher. She looked back at me.

“I should go with them…make sure he’s okay…there isn’t anyone else here for him Clark…”

She trailed off and I nodded. I didn’t like it but I understood. She disappeared inside the hospital and I sped off to go find Lex. I couldn’t imagine what Lex has gotten himself into the middle of this time…he really needed to be more careful because I wasn’t always going to be around to save his ass…

(Lana POV)

I was in the study reading. I glanced at the clock for the third time this morning.

It’s nine-thirty, where could Lex be? He said it would only take a couple of hours and he left around five-forty-five this morning. I couldn’t imagine a simple walk through taking this long.

I got up and tried his cell phone again…no answer. I banged the phone down. Something was wrong we had plans today and one thing Lex never does…is stand me up. I paced around his desk for a couple of minutes.

I wasn’t sure who to call. Normally in the past if something was wrong I’d call Chloe because I knew she would help…but now…especially after everything that went down a couple of weeks ago I doubt she would. Dammit! Where the hell was I supposed to start…maybe Lionel would be of some use…I’ll call him.

I picked up the phone and when I dialed his number it was the same as Lex’s…it just kept ringing. I hung up and shook my head. I put a hand on my stomach and paced some more when there was a knock on the doors.

A second later it opened and Lex’s assistant was standing there behind him were two police officers. His voice was hesitant when he spoke.

“Mrs. Luthor…the sheriff is here to speak with you.”

My face paled and I motioned for them to come in.

“What can I do for you sheriff?”

He took his hat off and walked a bit closer.

“Mrs. Luthor I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

One of my hands grabbed onto the desk and the other clutched the bulge of my stomach.

My voice held confusion even though I could feel what was coming. Oh please…if anyone is listening don’t let Lex be hurt…let him be alive…let him be okay…I can’t do this without him…

“A…an accident?”

He nodded.

“There was an explosion in a series of tunnels and your husband and father in law were down there. We managed to get you’re father in law out but at the time we weren’t aware your husband was down there…not until Lionel told us. We have a full search party down there in the field now dedicated to finding your husband and bringing him out alive…we don’t have anymore information then that right now though…”

I felt my heartbeat speed up frantically. My palms were sweaty and I felt tears coursing down my cheeks. I couldn’t breath I had to sit down I felt like I was loosing my footing. Oh god Lex…an explosion…he was right to not want me anywhere near this project… I heard a voice calling to me and I glanced up.

“Mrs. Luthor are you alright? Is there anyone I can call for you?”

I took a deep breath and shook my head. I was quiet for a couple of minutes so I could pull myself together. Blubbering like a baby wasn’t going to help Lex…I needed to keep my composure so I could figure out how to get him out of this situation and keep the project a secret at the same time…but first and foremost was making sure he was alright….everything else was second to that…

I shook my head.

“No…no I’ll be fine. I ha…have some things I need to take care of…”

I stood.

“Our assistant can show you out…just…sheriff please make sure you keep me updated on everything that’s going on…I…”

My voice almost broke. I tried again and it was a little better this time.

“I need my husband to be okay…please do everything you can…”

He nodded and Lex’s assistant walked them out. I sat back down heavily…I just couldn’t believe this…but everything is going to be fine…I know Lex and he’s resourceful…he wouldn’t leave the baby and I…he’d do anything he had to in order to make it back to us…


(Lex POV)

I started to come awake and when I tried to move my arms I felt them cuffed to a pole. I glanced around…I was still in the tunnel…god how long have I been out…is my Dad okay? I heard a chipper voice that hurt my head. I turned and saw the woman who knocked me out.

“Well, welcome back to sub-civilization.”

I struggled to stand up while still being handcuffed to the pole. I glanced around. My voice was horse when I spoke.

“What happened to my father?”

She shrugged.

“Not my problem. He was never part of the plan.”

I was so confused. Who was this lady…what plan? And what did she want with me? hopefully I’d be able to get some things out of her before anything happened.

“What do you want?”

She glared at me and spoke in a hard voice.

“My husband -- U.S. Special forces weapons sergeant Wes Keenan, the soldier you plucked from the battlefield. “

Oh…well that just sucks doesn’t it…I planned for a lot of things but I never planned for the crazy spouse to come back and bite me in the ass…

I played it cool as I spoke.

“Luthorcorp has many subsidiaries, Ms. Keenan, but I'm fairly certain human trafficking isn't one of them.”

She shook her head.

“I got notice four months ago that Wes died when his chopper was shot down in Afghanistan. I knew in my heart it wasn't true.”

Great…she had a feeling…wonderful I’m dealing with a lunatic…even though she is right… I spoke in a calm manner.

“It's hard to accept, but the heart sometimes lies.”

She spoke honestly and almost calmly as she looked me dead in the eye.

“When you love somebody, really love them, you know when you've lost them.”

I wonder if that was really true…I suppose it must be because here she is claiming he lives and well…he does…kind of…

“I don't doubt your love for your husband, Ms. Keenan.”

She started pacing around and speaking quickly but low.

“There was no chopper crash that day. In fact, there were no chopper crashes reported that entire month. And then the military failed to produce his body.”

I might as well try to reason with her…see if she’ll let me go if not I’m sure I could figure out a way to over power her…

“Un-cuff me. Look, I've got some influential friends at the Pentagon. I could help you find him”

She laughed in a crazy way.

“Yeah, nice try. You don't leave the service without learning a thing or two about reconnaissance. I used every source I had until they came up with this. Tell me, Mr. Luthor, what does a Fortune 500 Company want with a Green Beret?”

She showed me a document with a photo of her husband with a large Luthorcorp insignia on it. Wonderful…the woman was smarter than I gave her credit for… She got in my face and screamed.

“Tell me!”

I glared at her.

“It's only a matter of time before my security gets through. You should know their policy tends to err on the side of shoot now, ask later."

She moved away from me and gave me a sarcastic chuckle. When she turned back to me her eyes were cold and her voice was thick with hate.

“Except schematics for these tunnels don't exist in any city blueprints. And I've rigged all 5 miles with C-4. You see... I learned how to be all I could be in explosives ordnance control... discharged for having a short fuse.”

This was ridiculous…there had to be a way for me to get out of here…I couldn’t die here…Lana needed me…my son needed me…I wouldn’t abandon her like everyone else…I’d do whatever it took to get the hell out of here. My voice was frustrated when I spoke.

“If you think I'm lying, why don't you just kill me?”

She looked over at me from what she was doing.

“Then I'd be back to square one. Besides, I'm willing to bet this little project you're doing down here, whatever you're doing with Wes, is worth more to you than your life. You decide. If I don't speak to Wes in 20 minutes, it'll all be gone.”

She pushed a button and armed the explosives...the clocks started counting down.

Crap…I’m in real good this time…I can’t tell her about the project…I wouldn’t risk it…my motto always has been and always will be deny deny deny…she can’t prove a damn thing…but my head kept going back to this morning with Lana…her smiling face buried in the pillows and the happiness radiating off her as we playfully bantered…I couldn’t lose that…she needed me…I couldn’t let her down…

I heard her icy voice speaking in the background.

“What's wrong, Mr. Luthor? Haven't you ever done anything crazy for love?”

Yes…I most certainly have and I’d do it again…I’d do anything for Lana…which means getting out of here alive…to bad only one of us was going to have that option…

(Chloe POV)

Clark’s been gone for about forty minutes. When he left I got up because I couldn’t get back to sleep. I was worried about Martha…I had just eaten breakfast a little while ago and now I was pacing around the kitchen waiting for him to come back. Where the hell was he and why wasn’t he answering his cell phone? Ugh…

I was about to call him again when he came bursting through the kitchen door at top speed blowing my hair all over the place. He stopped in front of me and I shook my head.

“Where have you been? I was worried. How’s your mom what happened?”

He was looking around the kitchen for something but I wasn’t sure what. His voice was frustrated.

“It wasn’t mom my…she called because there was an explosion earlier this morning in a series of tunnels. Apparently Lionel and Lex were in them. They got Lionel out and that’s why we she was at the hospital but they didn’t know Lex was down there. Lionel wants me to go find him he said that even if they search for Lex there are so many different twists and turns down there that they’d never find him.”

I nodded.

“What did you say?”

He turned to face me leaned against the counter and shrugged.

“I didn’t…I wanted to come back and see if you could look into the tunnels for me on your computer…”

I gave him a small smile.

“Definitely.”

I got out my computer and twenty minutes later we still didn’t find anything…Clarks patients was wearing extremely thin so I sighed.

“Clark we’re not gonna find anything here. How about we just go down to wear the explosion was…that way you can take a look around?”

He gave me a soft glare.

“Chloe you’re doing it again…I don’t want you around this stuff right now…with the baby…and Lex I just…it makes me nervous okay?”

I spoke softly.

“I get that Clark…honest I do…but I’m not going to be going down there with you if you decide to go…I’m just coming to scope out the scene and help from above. I promise.”

He sighed and I knew I had him.

“Promise me you’ll be careful…and if I ask you to do something you’ll do it…no questions asked?”

I rolled my eyes but promised…and we were on our way.

We walked inside the police perimeter and I saw the Bomb Squad command center right near us. We had spilt up and talked to different people and nothing…well they did know that some G.I. Jane chick had taken Lex hostage but that’s it…no one knew his condition at least not on my side… Clark walked back over to me and his voice was strained.

“Chloe, any news on Lex?”

I shook my head.

“No, and the police captain just nixed the rescue efforts until they can de-bomb the area.”

He gave a frustrated sigh.

“That could take forever. Lionel said these tunnels are endless.”

I nodded. My voice was calm.

“Which means Lex and our G.I. Jane will be long gone before they get through all that debris.”

He looked extremely conflicted.

“So Lionel was right. Lex could die if I don't go down there.”

He glanced in my direction and I raised an eyebrow.

“What, don't look to me for encouragement. After what he did to my mom, I don't mind the idea of him cohabitating with the rats for all of eternity.”

Clark gave me a tiny smile.

“Trust me, Chloe. Lately I've had moments where I thought the world would be a better place without him also, but...”

I sighed and nodded.

"But…like I say all the time…we don't get to choose who you save. I really hate my logic sometimes…”

He laughed a little and then got serious.

“Let’s think of it this way Chloe…whatever's in those tunnels must be pretty damn important if it’s hidden that well…this may be the first step in taking Lex down.”

I grinned. I love the way this man thinks.

“Then I suggest you beat the bomb squad to the entrance and human-wrecking-ball your way in before anyone can see you.”

He nodded leaned down and gave me a deep kiss. A couple seconds later he pulled back and leaned his forehead against mine.

“I love you.”

“I love you too…be careful.”

He nodded and was gone. I hate that after everything Lex has done to us Clark is always the one who has to come to his rescue…I know that it would be wrong for Clark to pick and chose who he’s saves…I mean hell I’m the one who always tells him that…

But one of these days Lex is going to get himself into something and Clark won’t be there to save him…because face it…he can’t be there for everyone every second of everyday…no matter how super he is…he’s still only one person…but I’ll be looking forward to that day…when Lex Luthor finally meets his end…I won’t bat an eye or shed a single tear…I’ll smile because I’ll know that my family will finally be safe…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  08 Dec 2007 04:23
Chapter 14 - Nemesis - Part B

Quote:

Chapter 14 Part B

(Lana POV)

Not to long after the Sheriff left I got my stuff together and had Lex’s assistant arrange for one of the limo’s to take me to the hospital. I didn’t feel up to driving at the moment but I needed to go see Lionel.

When I arrived at the hospital and made my way to Lionel’s hospital room I found Mrs. Kent sitting out in the hallway. She glanced up and saw me, I gave her a small barely there smile. I liked Mrs. Kent…Lex did too. We had absolutely no problem with her…She was like a mother to both of us.

Even though Clark and Chloe had never supported me through my relationship with Lex Mrs. Kent was always there for me…I felt so guilty for what Lex and I would be doing with the members of her family…I wish that there was a way to avoid having her get hurt indirectly…unfortunately there wasn’t… Her voice was soft when she spoke.

“I'm glad you came, Lana. Any word on Lex?”

I shook my head and tears came to my eyes.

“Not yet.”

She rubbed my arm in a comforting gesture.

“I can't imagine what's going through your mind, but I know it will mean a lot to Lionel that you're here.”

I nodded. Hopefully Lionel was okay…I know he and Lex didn’t get along very well but I also know that Lionel is all Lex has left and Lex would be hurting if he died.

I sighed.

“I’m sorry Mrs. Kent…I’m a little scattered at the moment…I just…I mean I hope Lex is okay…I think that waiting is the worst part…”

She nodded her head sympathetically.

“Of course dear…plus all the extra emotion from the baby…it’s hard…”

I placed my hand on my stomach.

“Maybe some tea will help with the nerves. I’ll think I’ll go get some…”

She waved me off.

“Let me go. I could use some fresh air.”

I smiled.

“Thank you.”

And she walked away to go find some tea. I went to quietly walk into Lionel’s room when a doctor stopped me. He was having a conversation with someone and when he finished he turned in my direction. He was looking at me appraisingly. My voice came out more stern then I felt.

“I want to see him.”

He glanced at the click board and shook his head.

“I'm sorry, Mrs. Luthor, but the patient's being prepped for surgery.”

The doctor was frustrating me. I need to see Lionel so I can find out what’s really going on down there…because he’s the only one who saw it first hand…

“You don't understand. My husband is missing, and Lionel is the last person who saw him alive.”

He spoke in a tempered voice and barely made eye contact with me.

“I realize this is an incredibly difficult time for you.”

Okay, I’m done being nice to him…this is ludicrous. If I wanted to see my father in law you better believe they were going to let me in.

“Doctor are you aware that my husband donates hundreds of thousands of dollars to this hospital? I don’t care if you’re prepping him to fly to the moon I want to see my father in law…and I want to see him now or so help me god I will contact your superiors. If for some reason my husband doesn't survive... the man lying in that room is the only family I have left. I’m not asking for an eternity…all I need is a minute.”

He finally looked into my eyes and took in my appearance. He sighed.

“One minute.”

“Thank you.”

I walked into Lionel’s room. He was laying in the bed with his eyes closed. I placed my hand gently on top of his and I saw his eyes flutter open. I gave him a small smile. My voice was soft.

“I understand you're in a lot of pain. So I’ll try to make this quick Mr. Luthor.”

He looked relieved to see me.

“Lana.”

I nodded.

“I’m glad you’re alive…but Lionel…I need to know what happened…can you try to tell me? Did something go wrong with the project?”

He tried to move his head back and forth but it didn’t really work.

“Ugh.”

Well that was an attractive noise. I sat in a chair by his bed and my face held desperation.

“Please Lionel try…help me find Lex…I need to find him…”

My eyes started to water up again and this time I couldn’t stop the tears.

I heard a sound come from him and he spoke in a congested voice.

“Project…Ar..ares…”

He was taking deep breaths trying to get in oxygen. I leaned forward.

“What about it?”

His face registered some shock that I was familiar with the name.

“She…blew…up…tunnel…Lex…trapped…blueprints…”

He started choking and I rubbed his arm.

“I’m sorry…relax…I can get water…”

He shook his head.

“Thank you…I can try to work with that…I’ll figure it out…I won’t let Lex down…I promise. And don’t worry there going to take good care of you here. With Lex missing, I'm in charge of your medical decisions. I’ll make sure they do everything in their power to help you…I know you and Lex aren’t that close…but I’m hoping that will change after the baby is born…”

The door opened and I heard the doctor speaking to me.

“Mrs. Luthor, we need to take him to surgery now.”

I nodded. I squeezed Lionel’s hand and as I walked out of the door I spoke to the doctor in a hard voice.

“Make sure you do everything you can…I want every specialist you have working on this is that understood?”

He glared in my direction but I didn’t waver and he conceded.

“its understood Mrs. Luthor.’

And with that I walked out of the room and down the hall. Once I was in the hallway I saw two police officers talking. I walked slower so I could hear what they were saying.

“Captain, Lex Luthor's Porsche was parked at the tunnel entrance. We searched the vehicle and found this in the trunk. It might hold some answers.”

Crap…Lex’s briefcase most likely had blueprints and files on the project…My number one priority is helping Lex…but if this got out he’d be destroyed…Lex wouldn’t want that to happen. I have to protect my family. I strode passed the officers and on my way past them I grabbed the briefcase out of his hand. I glanced up and smiled.

“Thank you, officer.”

The officer looked semi shocked and spoke in a demanding tone.

“Ma'am, that's part of a crime scene.”

They must have thought I was deaf because his captain spoke right after him.

“We need to take that case as evidence.”

I nodded in an understanding way and I spoke with confidence.

“Of course I completely understand and as soon as I see your warrant to search my husband's vehicle I’ll let you come claim this.”

I turned and started to walk away and then stopped. I moved sideways so I could see them.

“And please call me as soon as you have any news on my husband’s whereabouts.”

I walked out shaking my head. They didn’t honestly think I was stupid did they? If they did go to get that warrant by the time they came back the files and everything will already be replaced…They were right about something though…the answers probably were in here…and if I could fin the blueprints maybe I could find a way to get Lex out…

(Lex POV)

After struggling for the past half hour I managed to get free from the cuffs that were binding me just as little miss G.I. Joe came back into the room and pointed a gun at my head. I was starting to think this wasn’t going to be as easy as I originally thought. She grinned at me and spoke.

“Perfect timing, MacGyver. You're gonna need those paws to call Wes.”

I sighed. What was I supposed to say? Oh sorry Wes can’t talk right now he isn’t done baking yet… I shook my head.

“The phones won't work this deep in the tunnel system.”

She practically tried to shove the phone in my face. Her voice was hard.

“Mine will. Take it. Take it! Without Wes, my life is over. When you meet someone that can pull you out of the trenches, you don't just give up on them.”

I looked at the phone in my hands.

“It's not that easy.”

Her facial expression changed and she was begging. Her voice held desperation and a part of me almost felt sorry for her.

“Put him on the phone. Please, let me hear his voice.”

I gave her a look of condolence. My voice was soft when I spoke.

“I can't call your husband.”

She started screaming again and moved toward me. I held my ground.

“Do you want to die down here? We're running out of time. Dial the damn phone.”

She was frustrating me and I was done trying to skirt around issues. I yelled in her face.

“He's dead! Wes didn't die in a crash. He was shot at close range by an M60 firearm. The bullets pierced his lungs, his liver, and his heart. LuthorCorp tried to save him with an experimental procedure, but it was too late. Look, your husband endured a prolonged and unsettling death. I'm sorry, but the lie was easier than the truth.”

She looked stricken…se stumbled back and her face was full of shock.

Her head was shaking fiercely.

“No. No.”

She lost her focus and I smirked…this is it…the in I was looking for. I lunged at her. I heard the gunshot and felt her grip on me loosen. When she slumped to the floor I picked up the gun, stood and turned it on her. My voice was forceful.

“Deactivate the explosives. Let's both get out of here alive.”
She shook her head and gave me a small smile.

“It's pre-programmed. I won't stop them, just like you can't stop this.”

I saw the button in her hand and I dropped the gun and started to run out of the room just as I heard everything implode inside the tunnels…dust filled my lungs and they burned…the explosion catapulted me forward…I won’t die like this…Lana’s counting on me…


(Clark POV)

I heard everything explode around me and I was thrown under a pile of ruble…after everything was still I wiped the dirt from my face and started taking the rocks off me. Ugh…what is that…oh no…Meteor rocks.

I glanced around there area and scattered all along the debris were pieces of Meteor rocks. Well isn’t this just terrific… I looked around and started walking forward. I felt tired and weak but I came here for a reason. I walked toward were the explosion came from. I yelled out as loud as I could muster. I was panting.

“Lex. Lex!”

I coughed a bit as I walked further in. I could see a figure buried under rocks in back of all the smoke. I kept walking and heard Lex coughing. When he saw me he looked startled.

“Ugh. Clark... What are you doing here?”

I glared at him.

“Your Dad sent me.”

I heard the slight relief in his voice when he spoke.

“He's alive? And you got through when nobody else could.”

I shook my head. He’d love to think that…he’d love for me to tell him I just flew on in here…well it wasn’t going to happen. My voice was hard when I spoke.

“No one else is trying, Lex. Police called off the rescue team when they found this place was rigged with explosives.”

He looked resigned and nodded.

“The entire tunnel system's scheduled to detonate in 14 minutes.”

I looked behind him to where the explosion came from. Pieces of dirt and debris were falling every few seconds.

“Is there a way to deactivate it?”

He gave a sarcastic chuckle.

“If you're trained in plastic explosives, be my guest. Come on.”

Against my better judgment I started helping dig Lex out from under the debris. I caught him staring at my hand and I looked down. I just realized my shoulder was throbbing in pain. Crap…I liked it better when I didn’t realize it. There was blood running from the shrapnel in my shoulder down to my hand. I glanced at Lex’s face and he looked surprised.

“Clark…”

He motioned to my arm. I rolled my eyes.

“Let’s get you the hell out of here…I have other things to do Lex…I don’t have all day…”

He glared at me and I helped him up…he was still looking at the blood running down my arm…well if anything this helps me…he has always thought I was indestructible…now he can see first hand that I’m not…

(Chloe POV)

I was officially freaking out. It’s been at least two hours since Clark went down there. I’ve called him six times and he hasn’t answered any of my calls. I took out my phone and tried again. It rang a few times before going to voicemail. I sighed.

“Hey, Clark, it's me again you know Chloe…your wife. Where are you? I feel like a stalker calling you a million times like this. I just…I need to know you’re okay…dammit Clark…please just call me as soon as you get this. I...love you. Bye.”

I saw the Bomb Squad leader walk by. I moved a little closer to where he stopped so I could in earshot. Jeez I might be pregnant but I’m still a reporter… his voice was strained.

“Hold up. That second blast dropped another 10 feet of rubble.”

When I heard that I walked over. I spoke loud and in a strong voice.

“Does that mean you haven't found Lex Luthor? Have you found anyone yet?”

He glanced at me then back at his men and continued talking.

“The inner tunnels caved. After those explosions, the whole area's completely unstable. There's no way anyone's getting in there by hand.”

I was starting to feel a little sick. I grabbed my stomach and took a couple of steps away from the Bomb Squad leader. I glanced at his vest and saw green dust all over it. I could feel time slowing down as realization hit me…Meteor rock…my eyes watered and I began to panic. No..oh, god no…if there was Meteor rock down there…Clark could be seriously hurt…no wonder he’s not answering his phone…I had to make sure. My voice was shaky when I spoke to him.

“What's on your vest?”

He looked down and wiped some of it off. His voice was tired.

“Dust from meteor rocks. It's all over the place down there.”

I shook my head and stumbled a bit. The guy grabbed onto me and gave me a worried look.

“Ma’am…this really isn’t the place for you right now…you’re looking a bit pale…is there someone I can call who will take you home? Parents, a boyfriend?”

I shook my head and faced him as some tears escaped my eyes.

“My husband…he…”

What was I doing…I couldn’t tell them…he was standing there waiting for me to finish. I shook my head.

“Nothing…I…you’re right I should get going…thank you for your assistance…”

I walked away and left him standing there staring at me. I knew what I had to do…but I really didn’t want to do it. There was only one place left to go for answers…the Luthor mansion…where I’m sure Lana was hold up. She most likely knew what was going on…whether or not she told me was a different story…

I got there about fifteen minutes later. I parked got out of Clark’s truck and walked up to the front door. Something was off…there was an extreme lack of security…I took a deep breath and walked into the house. It was now or never.

I could here my feet echoing through the hallway as I stopped outside the door to the study. You can do this Chloe…suck it up…it’s for Clark and that’s all that matters. I knocked on the large door and before anyone could respond I twisted the knob and opened it.

I walked inside the room and Lana’s head popped up from behind the computer screen. Her eyes were red but her pose was strong. She eyed me suspiciously. Her voice was tinged with coldness when she spoke.

“Chloe…”

I used the same tone with her.

“Lana…”

We were both quiet for a few minutes when I couldn’t take the silence anymore.

“Clark went into the tunnels to help Lex…”

She raised an eyebrow.

“Why would Clark do that?”

I gave her a nasty look.

“Because unlike you and Lex…Clark is a good person…you seem to be forgetting that he was the one who saved your life and your child’s life not too long ago.”

She nodded. Her voice seemed tired.

“What do you want Chloe?”

I thought about it for a couple of seconds before I looked her directly in the eye.

“For the next 24 hours…I want a truce… You have issues with me and I certainly am not your biggest fan…you aren’t fond of Clark and I despise Lex. Personally I don’t want to have anything to do with him returning from this little excursion…but if bringing Lex back is the only way to get Clark back…then I’d help in a heart beat.”

She looked intrigued and I continued.

“I know you know what’s going on…and I know you have information that you’re sitting on…you have to…I need that information to find Clark and you can’t find Lex on your own…Can you do it Lana? Can you put everything else aside so that we can work together and find Clark and Lex?”

She stood there looking at me thoughtfully…it was a long shot…but I had no other options… I saw her motion to the seat in front of the desk.

“Sit…we have a lot to cover and not enough time to do it in..”

Her voice was passive and I sat. Thank god…now all I had to do was stay non-confrontational with Lana for the next day and everything would be fine…unfortunately that was easier said then done…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  08 Dec 2007 04:37
Chapter 14 - Nemesis - Part C

Quote:
Chapter 14 Part C

(Lana POV)

She stood there looking at me waiting for my answer. This wasn’t a good idea…actually it was a pretty bad idea. But I know Chloe can help me get Lex back…and ultimately that’s all that mattered to me. I motioned to the seat in front of me and spoke in a passive voice.

“Sit…we have a lot to cover and not enough time to do it in...”

She sat down and I ended the video I’d been watching on the computer. I can’t let her see all the files so I need to think of a quick way to spilt everything up…crap…Lex is so much better at this then me. Chloe broke the silence.

“I didn’t see you around the Bomb site at all…”

Great…we were going to try small talk.. I nodded.

“I thought I'd be more useful here. Has there been any news?”

She shook her head.

“No, that's the problem. Because I'm not a Luthor, no one will talk to me. What have they told you?

I shrugged and leaned back into Lex’s chair.

“The Sheriff came by this morning told me what happened, I went to see Lionel in the hospital to make sure he was ok and I’ve been here ever since. They said as soon as they knew anything they’d call…and they haven’t yet so I’ve been doing my own research into what happened…”

Her voice sounded strange when she spoke.

“Well…what have you got? Anything useful that might help us find them?”

I glanced at her. I hesitated before I spoke.

“Not too much…”

I could hear the frustration in Chloe’s voice when she spoke.

“Damnit Lana! The whole point of working together is for us to both add what we know into the mix.”

I heard her voice catch at the end of the sentence.

“Clark went into those tunnels hours ago, and I haven't heard from him since. Forget about everything else Lana…33.1, whatever projects you’re working on…I don’t care. This isn’t about me gathering information from you it’s about getting them out of those tunnels alive…and if you’re not serious about helping then I’m leaving.”

She stood up and started walking out and something hit me. We were in the same boat. As far apart as we have grown lately she is searching for her husband to and she knows exactly what I’m feeling right now…Clark went down there to save Lex and now we had to save them… I stood up and moved towards her.

“Chloe wait…”

She turned and I paused.

“I’m sorry…I’m just…I’m so scared I won’t be able to get to him in time…”

I saw her face soften as she came closer to me.

“So am I. That’s why I came here. Lana…Lex wouldn’t have been in those tunnels if he didn’t have something going on there…before you interrupt I don’t care what it is…but I knew if you had information you wouldn’t turn it over to the police because of that…so I was hoping you’d be able to show me and maybe the two of us can figure out how to get them out…”

I hesitated for a brief moment before nodding. She was right…it’s not about the projects…or Chloe or anything else…it’s about Lex…and Clark turned back around and walked over to the desk. I pulled Lex’s briefcase out so Chloe could see it. I opened it, spread the papers out and motioned for her to come over.

She raised an eyebrow.

“What’s all that?”

I sighed.

“This is all the paperwork on those tunnels…blueprints included.”

I laid them out and started showing it to her.

“Ok…this is where there saying the explosion was…now Lex would be making his way this way…there’s another entrance…that no one knows about…he was trapped under there he’d head this way.”

She gave me a calculating look.

“You knew…all this time everyone has been trying to figure out how to get him out and you knew?”

I gave her a frustrated sigh.

“Listen…don’t get mad at me ok…I was doing what Lex would have wanted me to do…I didn’t know Clark was down there…this wasn’t some kind of plot Chloe. If it was do you honestly think I’d put my husband down there?”

I heard her sigh.

“How do we get them out Lana? We have to give the blueprints to the Police…so they can send people to get them…before anything goes wrong.”

My voice was hard when I spoke.

“No. we can give the police the location but they can’t have the blueprints…I won’t give it to them…we can go to them explain there’s another entrance and lead them there.”

“Lana! Clark is down there! We don’t have time to be finicky about giving damn blueprints to the police.”

I sneered at her.

“I don’t know what all the fuss is about Chloe…We both know Clark isn’t what he seems…I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

Her look turned glacial and when she spoke her voice was furious and sounded like it was about to break.

“I know you and Lex think you know everything about Clark…I know you think he’s this…super being or whatever and I can’t even fathom why…but Lana…I swear on the life of my unborn child…Clark is NOT invincible like you all seem to think…he could be hurt or worse in those tunnels…so stop acting as if Lex is the only one in danger…”

I looked into her face…and the look in her eyes is what made me believe her…it was the same look I had in mine…

(Lex POV)

Clark was bleeding pretty bad so I was standing there attempting to pull out the shrapnel out of his shoulder. The mere fact that it was there threw me. It was quiet and every few seconds a new piece of debris would fall from somewhere. I spoke softly.

“You're the last person I ever expected to be pulling shrapnel out of.”

He looked over his shoulder and glared. I got a good hold on it and ripped it out. He grunted in pain.

“Ugh!”

Everyone was always asking for honesty…well Clark was gonna get a dose of it right now. He wouldn’t be able to run away from the conversation this time. Just me and him… I spoke with a bit of accusation in my voice.

“I saw what happened when I stabbed you with that chisel, Clark. That thing accordion like it hit solid rock. I don't know why I needed so badly to believe that you're more than human.”

He grunted and faced me as he shook his head.

“'Cause nothing's ever good enough for you, Lex. You’re always looking for the greater truth…even when there isn’t one.”

I shook my head. So maybe I was wrong about him…that doesn’t explain everything…he’s been lying to me since the minute I ran him off that bridge.

“The truth would have been. You may be flesh and blood, but you've been hiding secrets from me since we met. You never trusted me.”

I tied a piece of a shirt around his arm as I spoke. He ripped his arm away from me and his voice held frustration in it.

“Ugh! Would it have mattered? What are you really doing down here, anyway, Lex? Trying to find new ways to exploit the people that have different abilities than you?”

I looked away from him. This was always the problem with us…the reason why we went our separate ways…one of the main reasons I went after Chloe in the beginning…because I knew it would hurt him.

I knew that he had confided in her and I wanted him to suffer for being honest with her. So when all this first started…I took her to get to him…until I realized what I could do with someone like her and now…it had nothing to do with hurting Clark…that was just a bonus.
My voice was hard when it came out.

“There's no gray area with you, is there? It's either all good or all evil. Did you even try to see my humanity before you decided I had none?”

He stalked towards me and his frame towered over me.

“I did, Lex. I gave you every chance in the world…I tried so hard to believe in the good in you…to look past what everyone else saw. And look where that got us? You’ve been experimenting on my wife! Did you just expect me to just look past that?”

His voice was angry and I looked him dead in the eye.

“You wrote me off long before you were married to Chloe…long before the two of you were even together. The truth is you wrote me off when you found out about Lana and I. After that things weren’t the same.”

He looked away. I glared at his back.

“What’s the matter Clark? You don’t have anything to say about that do you? No because you know it’s true.”

He whipped around and seemed somewhat out of breath.

“No Lex…it was then that I saw your true colors shinning through…that’s why we stopped being friends. Not because of Lana, although that did play a part…it was because of everything…you talk about me not being honest with you yet look at everything hiding in your closet…you have more skeletons than anyone I know!”

At that moment a particularly large part of the tunnels came crashing down. Some fell on Clark so I pushed him a little to the left and started running in that direction. I turned my head back and saw that he was slowing down.

No…he can’t die here…I wouldn’t let him…I have plans for him and Chloe…after everything that’s happened with us there was no way I was going to let Clark Kent’s death be this easy. I called out to him in a loud voice.

“Clark, come on. Clark! Come on. What are you waiting for? Let's go. Clark! Come on. Come on. Get up!”

He was holding his stomach and he looked extremely weak. He shook his head.

“It's another dead end. We have to try another tunnel.”

Just then he plopped down on the ground against the wall. I glanced at him and he didn’t look well. He looked up and spoke in a sore voice.

“Lex, these ceilings aren't gonna hold out much longer. We have to go back.”

Was he crazy? We couldn’t go back we’d be crushed under all that debris.

“You know we don't have time for that.”

He glared at me and his voice was accusing.

“Something tells me no one else knows about these tunnels.”

I shook my head. If I was honest with myself for a minute…I needed Clark…we had to work together to get out of here. I would have all the time in the world to toy with him once we were out of here alive. But my priority is getting back to Lana…and if I had to work with Clark I would.

“By no one, I’m sure you’re referring to Lana. I'm sorry to disappoint you Clark but she does know about these tunnels. She’s probably already trying to figure out how to get me out of here. I know you don’t trust me…not that that’s new…and I can’t say that I trust you at the moment. But right now all we have is each other down here. I’m not going to be able to get back to Lana without your help…and you won’t be able to get to Chloe without mine. So we can work together on getting out of here or we can both try and find our own way and possibly never see them again. I don’t know about you…but I’m not willing to risk never meeting my son…”

His facial expression held contempt.

“You have done everything in your power to physically and mentally hurt the woman I love on practically a daily basis, you turned Lana into someone I can’t even recognize anymore, you have been putting me in life threatening situations for years trying to find out what I’ve been hiding from you…and you want me to trust you…with my life?

I shrugged and spoke in an angry voice.

“First off you have no proof of everything you claim I did to Chloe…secondly I didn’t force Lana to be with me nor did I turn her into the dark person you make her out to be. The way she is with you reflects on all the frustration she’s held for you over all these years. That’s all on you Clark…not me because Lana isn’t like that with me or anyone else for that matter…well aside from Chloe.”

I lowered my voice and spoke in an uncaring manner.

“If you don’t take me up on my offer you’ll die down here…and so will I. You don’t really have anything to lose…but you do have freedom to gain so I don’t really see the problem.”

He glared at me.

“Fine…we help each other get out of here…but this doesn’t mean anything Lex…this are not and will not be ok with us when we get out of here…it doesn’t change where I stand or make what you’re doing any less wrong.”

I gave him a cynical chuckled.

“Don’t worry Clark…I stopped expecting you to act like a friend a long time ago.”

He got up and we started walking. His voice held resentment and possibly a small amount of sadness when he spoke.

“Were we ever really friends, Lex?”

I thought we were…until Clark turned out to be like everyone else. I did everything in my power to prove to Clark I was worthy of his friendship and in the end he threw everything back in my face. I got frustrated after that and decided from that moment on I was going to do whatever it took to learn what he’s been hiding from me. At times it still bothered me… I wasn’t looking at him as I spoke but my voice came out serious.

“I don't know. I have nothing to compare it to. You're the only real friend I've ever had, Clark. And somewhere along the way, you saw me as your nemesis, turned your back on me.”

Right when I turned around to face him a large part of the ceiling collapsed between us sending a large pile of debris raining down onto Clark as I scrambled out of the way. When the dust settled I saw Clark still unharmed.

Maybe I wasn’t so wrong after all. He was trapped under a large metal beam. When he spoke his voice was strained…and breathy.

“Lex, get this off of me. Ugh! Don't leave me.”

For a minute I thought about leaving him just where he was and getting myself out alive. And then something incredibly strange happened. It wasn’t the thought of seeing him suffer with what I was going to do to Chloe that made me decide to help him…If that was me lying under those rocks…

I would want him to he help me because I promised Lana I’d never leave her…and I had a feeling that Clark had promised Chloe the same thing. When we left here things would go back to normal…but as of right now I promised Clark we help each other get out and back to the woman we love…I planned to keep that promise.


I looked around at the beam and the debris around him. There wasn’t much time left I needed to find something to lift that beam off with. I turned and ran down the tunnel and around the corner. I could hear Clark screaming in the background. Each time he spoke my name it got louder…more frantic…He really thought I was leaving him there to die…

“Lex! Lex! Lex!”

(Clark POV)

I watched Lex run away and my blood ran cold. He couldn’t leave me here…I promised Chloe everything would be fine…I couldn’t leave her to fend for herself especially if Lex got out of here alive. She needed me…

I kept on pushing the beam trying to get it off. I wasn’t having much luck and all the struggling was making my chest hurt. I went to give it one more try and I pushed hard against the metal beam with my eyes closed and I felt it lifting.

I opened my eyes and there was Lex using a metal bar to help lever the beam off me. He leaned over and held out his hand I hesitated for a second before I reached up grabbed it and he helped me get free from under the rubble.

He eyed me and shook his head.

“Did you really think I was gonna let you die alone down here, Clark?”

I didn’t say anything just looked away and when I did glance at him I thought I saw a flash of hurt in his eyes.

“Guess you never knew me at all. The last cave-in exposed a hatch. If we want to get out of here that’s our chance.”

I nodded and we made a run for it. Our time had to be running short…we’ve been down here for too long. Lex yelled out to me in a rushed voice.

“Go!”

We made it into a small chamber with a large ladder that lead up to the surface. I could see the sun shinning through a metal grate. I glanced at him.

“This is it...”

He nodded.

“Less talking Clark more climbing…we have to get up there…NOW!”

I nodded and we both grabbed onto the ladder and started climbing as quickly as we could. About half way up I saw Lex slip and using all the strength I had left I reached out and grabbed his arm until he got his footing. Our eyes me and he inclined his head in my direction as we continued up.

There had to be only seconds left when we finally reached the grate. I pushed at it and nothing happened. After a moment we looked at each other and at the exact same moment we shoved together as had as we could on the grate. It freed up and we were able to climb through one at a time as the entire tunnel system we were just in erupted into a massive explosion.

We were knocked out of the way just when a large fireball flew up the shaft we just climbed out of. It spilled into the air and we landed on opposite sides of the opening. I rolled over and glance up into the sunshine. I could feel my body starting to heal up as the suns rays beat down on my body. I let out a deep breath. And I thought it was going to be a quiet and relaxing day today…I couldn’t have been more wrong…

(Chloe POV)

Lana and I were standing on the sidelines as the police refused to go where Lana told them to. I was pissed. Lana came back over to me with the Bomb Squad commander in tow and I could see the furious look on her face.

“What’s going on?”

He spoke with slight hesitation.

“We can’t send our men down there without knowing where and when the bombs will detonate.”

I glared at him and Lana was livid when she spoke.

“But you can leave our husbands down there to die because you don’t want to do your job? Dammit! When I’m done with you your team is going to have to find someone else to lead them because you’ll be buried so far underground they’ll never find the body!”

I raised and eyebrow and the commander glared at Lana.

“I’ll ignore that threat because I know you’re under a lot of stress Mrs. Luthor…but don’t let it happen again…now I have to get back to my team you two shouldn’t be here.”

He walked away and Lana sighed in frustration. I rubbed her arm.

“It’ll be ok…Clark and Lex are resourceful…they’ll find away out of this…they have to.”

She nodded and then all of a sudden everyone started running around frantically and the ground rumbled. I looked down in horror. Lana’s face mirrored mine. I yelled out to the next person I saw go by.

“What happened?”

He glanced over and his face was sympathetic.

“The series of bombs that was down there just went off…the tunnels were caved in…”

He jogged away and I felt Lana grab onto my arm as my breath left me…No…I can’t believe that. Clark isn’t gone…so what the bombs went off…he wasn’t there…he couldn’t be…I can’t… I shook my head and heard Lana’s sob next to me.

I tried so hard to hold it in…but I couldn’t. Tears started flowing down my cheeks. I was holding onto Lana as hard as she was me. There was smoke and dust everywhere. I looked up and my face held shock. I saw two figures walking toward the crowd of people. I shook Lana. My voice held astonishment.

“Lana…LANA!”

She glanced at me because of my frantic voice and I saw her red eyes…I couldn’t talk so I pointed to about fifty feet in front of us. She turned her head and I heard her gasp. Her voice was a whisper when she spoke.

“Lex?”

We moved as quick as we could. There faces started to become clear and I then I saw it…the unmistakable blue shirt. They must have seen us because there calm walking turned into a frantic jog. When Clark was about three feet from me I catapulted into his arms and he caught me.

“Oh god….I thought…I thought I was never going to see you again…I thought we lost you.”

He shook his head and I could feel his grin against me.

“You’ll never lose me Chloe…”

His voice was soft and he still hadn’t let me go.

“You don’t know how good it feels to hold you.”

He buried his face in my neck and I chuckled. I turned my head and saw Lana and Lex in a similar position. Her voice was soft and I could hear the tears in her eyes.

“I thought you were dead. We tried…so…hard to get them to go down…but they just wouldn’t. Even when I threatened the commander’s life...”

I heard Lex chuckled and Clark finally released his death grip around me but he didn’t let go of my hand as we faced them.

“You’re kidding.”

Lana raised her eyebrow and I smirked. My voice was amused.

“She’s absolutely not…She said he’d be buried so deep they’d never find the body.”

The three of us laughed and Lana glared at Lex.

“I was upset…”

He nodded and kissed her forehead.

“It’s ok…I would have done the same for you.”

He glanced down at her and I think it was the first time I’ve ever seen his face this unguarded.

“I love you…so much”

Her face beamed.

“I love you too. We both do.”

She placed a hand on her stomach and gave him a soft kiss. Lex turned to Clark and the four of us stood there for a moment looking at each other. It almost felt like old times…Lex and Clark were still friends…Lana and I were like sisters…and everything was ok… but then reality came back to me and Lex broke the silence. He looked directly at Clark and held out his hand.

“Thank you…for helping me get out…I couldn’t have done it without you Clark…”

Clark hesitated before taking his hand and shaking it.

“You too Lex…if it wasn’t for you…I probably wouldn’t be standing here right now…so…thanks.”

He nodded put him arm around Lana and they turned to leave. Lana stopped him and came back over to me. I was confused for a minute before she embraced me in a tight hug.

“Thanks for today Chloe…and…I’m sorry…for everything…”

Lex held out his arm to her, she took it and they walked away. I looked at her retreating form with confusion. What exactly was she sorry for? Clark nudged me and I glanced up. He smiled and his voice sounded tired.

“Let’s go home Chloe…”

I nodded and we started to walk away from all the people.

“When I saw the dust from the Meteor rock Clark…I thought…god I was so scared…”

He pulled me tighter to him.

“Everything’s fine now…I’m fine…just tired a lot happened down there.”

That made me curious.

“Like what?”

I saw him smirking but he didn’t look at me. He stopped walking and made sure no one was around. He lifted me up and super sped back to the farm. When we got there he put me down and I saw we were in our room.

“Well?”

He sighed.

“I’ll tell you about it later Chloe…right now all I really wanna do is lay here…with you in my arms. It’s been a long day and I really need to feel you next to me right now…”

I nodded and got into bed with him. He held me tight to him and I snuggled deeper into him.

If he didn’t want to talk now we didn’t have to…I was just happy to have him back…invincible or not I almost lost him today and that was unacceptable…the next time Lex got himself into a mess like this I wasn’t permitting Clark to go in after him…he could ask one of his super hero friends to do it because I wasn’t gonna go through that ever again…not if I could help it…

(Lex POV)

I just left a sleeping Lana at home when the phone call came. She saved all the important data from getting taken by the police…she said that she knew that’s what I would have wanted. She’s amazing through everything that was going on today she still took care of this while I was gone… I strode down the tunnel system I was in earlier today and a scientist from the project Ares team led the way. He spoke in a satisfied tone.

“You'll be pleased to hear the prototype is just days from reaching its fullest functioning capacities.”

We walked into a large room and stopped in front of a large window chamber where Wes Keenan was lying unconscious and in straps. I glared in his direction.

“Thanks to your wife, I almost died for you. Let's hope there's nothing you can't do for me.”

This prototype would be the worlds leading defense against everything that was to come…and I invented it…the one thing that would be able to stop all the Meteor infected people…to protect the world from them…but not before I let them all loose…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  08 Dec 2007 04:51
Chapter 15 - Part A

Quote:
Chapter 15 Part A

(Chloe POV)

Ugh…I’m never going to get this…it’s impossible! I hate Oliver Queen! Okay…I don’t hate Oliver I just wish he would have made this stupid message a little easier for me to crack.

I sighed and leaned back in my chair. I placed my hands on my stomach. It was huge…I just had a doctor’s appointment last week and apparently I’m right on schedule. I’m eight months pregnant…oh and a week and I feel like a house.

I heard my cell phone ringing and rolled my eyes. If that was Clark again I swear the boy was gonna be in trouble. I answered it.

“Hello?”

“Hello Miss Sullivan”

I raised an eyebrow…what could Lionel want.

“Mr. Luthor…to what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call…and by the way it’s Kent now…remember?”

I heard his chuckle.

“Right you are and please there’s no need to be so formal. Call me Lionel. I was calling because I spoke with Clark and he told me you were at The Planet. I have some papers for him and I was wondering if I could stop by and give them to you so you can bring them home to him. Is that alright?”

I sat up in my chair.

“Sure that’s fine. What kind of paperwork…if you don’t mind me asking?”

I could hear the amusement in his voice.

“Well I suppose it would be futile to hide it from you since Clark will probably show you. I’ll explain when I get their…see you soon.”

And the line went dead. I shook my head and got up to go to the vending machine. When I came back over to my desk Lois’s phone was lighting up. I scrunched up my face and picked it up. There were two new messages.

I opened them and it was filled with numbers. What is this? Hey it’s from the same number as before…oh my god…I did it I did it! I wrote down the information on a piece of paper and then deleted the messages. It was a series of numbers and what I think might be an acronym. I heard footsteps and looked up. Lionel was walking through the door and I smiled.

“Hey Mr.…I mean Lionel. How are you?”

“Fine and you? You’re looking quite lovely this evening.”

“I’m good.”

He came over and his eyes landed on my protruding belly.

“How are you feeling? Looks like it’ll be any time now.”

I nodded and rubbed my stomach.

“My due date is in three weeks…I’m a little nervous.”

He gave me a small sincere smile.

“I’m sure that’s perfectly normal…but I’m sure you’ll want to be getting down to business.”

He held up a folder labeled top secret. My eyes widened and I practically grabbed it from his hand.

“Oh my god…is this I think it is?”

I glanced at his face and gave him an impressed look.

“These are files on all the 33.1 locations…I thought they would be of some use to you and our young hero.”

I sat down in my chair and raised my eyes to meet his.

“How did you get this? I can’t imagine Lex just handing these over to you…what…what did you do to get this?”

I saw him gaze around the room before his eyes fell on me.

“It’s not so much what I did…it’s information that I hold that would be detrimental to my sons marriage should it be exposed to his wife, so he thought he’d keep me happy for the time being so I don’t…spill the beans.”

Something that will destroy their marriage? They were practically attached at the hip lately and after everything that Lana knew about Lex I can’t imagine what would make her turn away from him. Curiosity buzzed inside of me.

“What is it?”

He raised an eyebrow.

“You don’t expect me to tell you that…do you?”

No I didn’t but the reporter in me had to ask.

“Not really but I had to ask. I’m actually glad you stopped by though. I’ve been researching something and I hit a dead end. Nobody knows anything about it. Do you think I can give it to you so you can look into for me?”

He nodded.

“Of course.”

I smiled. I sat down for a secondly and quickly flipped through the folder before closing it. I stood up to grab the papers for Lionel. When I took a step I felt a sharp pain shoot into my lower back and I faltered. Lionel must have caught it because I saw a look of worry cross his face as he took a step toward me.

“Chloe…are you alright?”

I frowned and put a hand on my lower back.

“I don’t know…”

He touched my arm and I felt the pain shoot up my back.

“Ow…”

I glanced up at him with a frantic look on my face.

“I think something’s wrong…I have to call Clark.

He started leading me out of The Planet.

“Don’t worry…we’ll call him on the way to the hospital.”

I nodded and let him help me into his limo.

The pain was sharper now and I was trying to keep calm…oh god…am I in labor? Is this what it feels like…kill me now…

I saw Lionel take out his phone and push a number…I hope he’s calling Clark…I don’t think I can do this without him…

(Clark POV)

I was in the living room reading a baby book when I heard the phone ring. I reached over and answered it.

“Hello?”

The voice on the other end was tense.

“Clark…it’s Lionel…you need to meet Chloe and I at Metropolis General.”

I sat up anxiously and I could hear the worry in my own voice.

“What’s going on what happened?”

His voice was hesitant as he spoke.

“I’m not sure…she stood up to grab something for me and she said she was in pain. I thought it best to take her to the hospital. We just got here now I’m going to check her in I think you should get here right away though.”

I tossed the book I was reading and stood up.

“I’ll be right there.”

I ended the call and super sped to the hospital. Oh god…was everything okay? Was this normal or was something wrong with the baby? Crap…maybe she was in labor…but she can’t be it’s too early…

I got to the hospital and ran around in a frenzy looking for Chloe. I got to the front desk and tapped on it hurriedly a few times to get the nurses attention.

“Hi…hello…I’m looking for my wife Chloe Kent….she’s eight months pregnant and she was just brought in here by Lionel Luthor…is she okay what’s going on?”

She halted me with her hand.

“Sir calm down. I need you to relax give me her name again please.”

I gave a frustrated sigh.

“Chloe Kent.”

I saw her type it and search the screen. She frowned.

“Are you sure she was brought here? Did we call you?”

I shook my head. Chloe needs me I don’t have time for this!

“No Lionel Luthor called me and told me they had just gotten here.”

“Well she isn’t in our system maybe they haven’t finished checking in yet. You can wait right over there and when I can find her in the computer I’ll give you a call over.”

I looked at her with wide eyes. Did she really think I was going to sit in the waiting room while my wife could be in labor or worse…I swear everyone is going out of there mind.

I shook my head and walked past her. I heard her calling out to me but I ignored it. I needed to find Chloe. I concentrated and looked for either her voice or Lionel’s and I found it…well I found his.

I super sped to where they were and I appeared just as the doctor was walking away from Lionel. I grabbed onto his arm lightly.

“What happened? Nobody will tell me what’s going on. They said she wasn’t even in there system.”

Lionel was nodding and patting my arm reassuringly.

“I’m sorry about that Clark…I had them rush her up here right away for a doctor to look at her. Her physician wasn’t on call so I got the best doctor here.”

He paused and placed a hand on my shoulder. He gave me a smile.

“Son, everything is fine. She was having what they call Braxton Hicks contractions. I guess the easiest way to explain it…”

I cut him off. I knew what they were. I’ve been reading up on things and sometimes it happened to first time mothers…even people who have had a few kids but they usually know the difference because well… they’ve had kids…

“It’s fake labor…I know. So everything’s fine?”

He nodded. I felt relief over take my body. Thank god…I don’t know what I would have done…

“Where is she? I want to see her.”

He pointed to the room right across from where we were standing.

“The doctor said just to be on the safe side that he was going to do a full blood panel on her to make sure everything is in the right order.”

I nodded. I started to walk into the room and then I paused. I turned and glanced at Lionel. He really came through tonight.

“Thank you…thank you for being there for her when I wasn’t. I really appreciate all you’ve done for Chloe. The hospital after her accident…the other stuff, and now this. I hope you know how grateful we both are. I know I’m not always the friendliest person to you…but don’t misconstrue that. I do like you…I just don’t like you with my Mom.”

I gave him half a smirk and he chuckled.

“Yes I have noticed that…well you have a very special woman waiting in there for you. I’ll let you attend to that. The papers that I wanted you to have I placed them into Chloe’s bag as we were leaving for the hospital. You should take a look at them. Tell Miss Sullivan I hope she feels better.”

I nodded.

“Will do…and it’s Kent…she only uses Sullivan at The Planet because she thinks it would hurt her career to change it…so yea.”

He smiled and nodded.

“I’ll see the two of you at dinner on Friday.”

I nodded and he left. I took a deep breath and went into Chloe’s room. She was laying there reading the paper out loud…I’m assuming to the baby. I grinned.

She’s nuts…that kid is gonna know more about investigative reporting than he does about anything else. He’ll probably be trying to help his Mommy on stories before he can even walk. I moved further into the room.

“Hey there.”

She craned her neck and glanced at me. I saw her smile.

“Hey. I’m glad you made it…I wasn’t sure you would.”

I sat next to her and kissed her hand.

“Sorry it took so long. I got here about fifteen seconds after Lionel called but they were running me around downstairs and then when I came up here Lionel was telling me what the doctor said…False alarm huh?”

She glared and then her face turned innocent as she gave me a shaky smile.

“Yup…but let me tell you if that was a false alarm and the real deal feels worse…I think I changed my mind about having the baby….can we give it back?”

I chuckled. She was scared…well she didn’t have to be everything was gonna be just fine. I’d make sure of it.

“Your just nervous…when you see him everything will change you’ll be so glad you decided to have him Chloe.”

She nodded.

“Yea I know…I just…don’t want the pain part…since I carried him for almost nine months do you wanna have him? We’ll call it even…”

She grinned.

I shook my head.

“No…that’s okay but thanks for offering.”

She slapped me lightly and we laughed. The doctor wanted her to stay here until her blood results came in just to make sure everything was fine. Which I’m sure it is. Doctor Rhinehouse told us everything was fine with Chloe and the baby he took blood about a week or so ago…so there’s no reason to worry…

(Lex POV)

My Dad took copies of all the 33.1 locations on file…I couldn’t stop him and that pissed me off more than anything. But, there’s one location that isn’t in any files…one location that’s top secret to everyone but three people. It’s where I plan to take Chloe when everything is on its way with project Ares. Lana helped me pick the place out. Its secluded location would do wonders for us. The last thing we needed was people nosing about.

I picked up the papers from my desk and started shredding them. I heard the door open and I glanced up. It was Lana. She was wearing a red satin robe and it looked amazing on her. I smiled.

“You’re up.”

She nodded and came over to the desk. She sat on the edge and rubbed her stomach.

“I’ve been up for a little bit, but I didn’t feel like getting out of bed…to much work.”

I chuckled and she glared at me. The laughter died on my lips and I turned so she was between my legs.

“Lana…you’re absolutely stunning…you know that right? Pregnancy definitely agrees with you.”

She shrugged and I saw sadness cross her face and her eyes teared up. Crap…I hated when she cried it made me feel horrible and somehow it was always me that made her cry…even if I didn’t say anything upsetting.

“Please don’t cry…”

She gave me a small smile.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. It’s all these damn hormones! I wish I could just have the baby already so we wouldn’t have to deal with this…I just…I wanna see him you know?”

I smiled. I absolutely knew. I couldn’t wait until Lana had the baby…we’d finally have a family and I’d have he best of both worlds from my hallucination two years ago.

“Of course I know. I’m excited too. What do you say I take the day off of work and we just camp out here in the mansion. I’ll run out and get ice cream, popcorn, and some movies and we can just stay in like normal people do. I’m sure Luthorcorp won’t fall apart without me for one day…”

She grinned.

“That sounds amazingly normal but I kind of can’t see you doing it.”

I smiled. That could be because I never have done it but with Lana it’s different…and can do all those things and it doesn’t feel awkward or weird. I shrugged.

“Well…that’s because I don’t usually do thing’s like that. But I should get accustomed to it because our son will probably want to do things like that…and I know you like it…I’ve just never had anyone I felt comfortable doing stuff like that with…until now.”

I saw her eyes water and if it’s possible the smile on her face got brighter. She stood up though and gave me a wicked grin. Her smile turned into a smirk as she walked away. She spoke playfully.

“Mmm I see what you’re doing Mr. Luthor…trying to sweet talk me…it won’t work…I’m not that easy…”

I chuckled.

“You’re gonna need more than words…you’ll need…Chunky Monkey ice cream…popcorn with movie theater butter…Milk duds…and our night wouldn’t be complete without Starburst.”

She was walking with a small skip to her step and she stopped at the door and turned quickly to me. She could see the grin on my face.

“Hmmm…did you want to add to that list Lana?”

She could see the amusement in my face and I saw a glint of mischief in her eyes as she spoke.

“Oh and don’t forget the movies…get The Notebook and the other two are your choice…but since I’m an evil woman I will force you to endure two whole ours of chick flick drama…so we’ll need tissues too.”

I shook my head.

“I will not watching The Notebook Lana…I draw the line there.”

She scrunched up her face and tried to looked commanding…it was adorable.

“You will watch it Lex Luthor and you will like it.”

I laughed. I tried to make my voice stern but I couldn’t

“When did you start ordering me around hmmm?”

She smiled.

“The day we got married remember?”

She grinned and moved out of the room quickly and I heard her voice calling out not to forget the tissues. I shook my head and grabbed my jacket.

I didn’t understand…I could stand up to Meteor Freaks…Officers…Army personnel…some of the greatest criminal minds in the world…and yet my twenty-year-old wife occasionally scares the crap out of me.

I sighed and stood up. Time to go to the store…The Notebook…who in the world makes a movie about a notebook…how is that interesting? I walked out to my car and headed out.

(Chloe POV)


Clark and I were sitting in the hospital room playing a game of cards when the Doctor came into the room. I glanced up and smiled.

“Can I go home now?”

He had a stern look on his face and he stood in front of Clark and I glancing back and forth between us for a few minutes. I saw Clark frown and sit up straighter.

“Doctor…is everything okay? What’s going on?”

He opened up his file and glanced over the words then looked at me.

“Mrs. Kent…have you been taking any kind of drugs during your pregnancy?”

I gave him a horrified look. Why would he ask me that?

“Absolutely not. I’d never do that to my baby…or myself. I have never done drugs a day in my life doctor.”

He frowned.

“I’d like to speak to your husband privately for a Moment if that’s okay.”

He glanced at Clark.

“Can we speak in the hall?”

He gave me a weird look but got up and did as the doctor asked.

He glanced at me, came over and placed a kiss on the top of my head. He gave me a reassuring smile.

“I’ll be right back.”

I nodded. They walked out of the room and I carefully and as quietly as I could got out of bed to I could go by the door an eavesdrop…What? Hello Investigative…Reporter…me…did you think I wouldn’t?

I opened the door a smidge and I saw Clark’s head slightly tilt my way. He knew I was listening…Sometimes I hated having a husband with super hearing…

(Clark POV)

I could hear Chloe by the door and I smiled on the inside. First and foremost she was a reporter…that will never change and I didn’t want it to. It was one of the many reasons I loved her.

“What’s going on doctor? Is everything okay with Chloe and the baby?”

He gave me a once over appraisingly.

“Mr. Kent…if there is something you aren’t telling me now is the time to come clean.”

I frowned. What the hell was he talking about?

“What are you talking about?”

He shook his head.

“There are two different toxins that are shown in your wife’s blood results…she claims she hasn’t taken anything…but these chemicals didn’t just appear here…they were put there.”

My eyes widened. Chloe was being drugged…

“You think…I…drugged her? You think I’d hurt my wife and child like that?”

My anger was starting to build at this guy’s audacity. He didn’t even know me…I would never hurt Chloe or the baby…I’d do anything to protect them.

“Is the baby okay?”

His expression softened.

“The baby is fine…the chemicals haven’t seemed to alter or effect him in anyway. But the cells seem to be…unique…I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Crap…that really can’t be good…

“What are the chemicals? How would they have gotten inside her? I just don’t understand…”

I trailed off and he flipped through papers.

“It was ingested. I’m not sure how but that’s why I asked if she had been taking drugs. If you come back here in a week we’ll check in on things. I’m sorry for accusing you…we have to explore every angle.”

I nodded.

“I appreciate you telling us. We were at Chloe’s regular doctor about a week or so ago and he didn’t mention this to us. He said everything was fine and on schedule.”

The doctor frowned again.

“Who’s your primary doctor on the pregnancy?”

“Dr. Rhinehouse.”

He shook his head.

“I’m not sure he’s the greatest person to go to. Come back here next week and we’ll make sure everything is still fine and we’ll work on trying to get the toxins out of her system.”

I nodded and shook his hand.

“Thank you doctor…”

He walked away and I went back into he room and caught Chloe making her way back to bed. She had tears in her eyes and I came over next to her. I put my hand on hers and squeezed.

“Hey…everything is fine. I know you heard what he said…but the baby is fine…and we are going to come back here next week and he’ll help us.”

She shook her head. Her voice was loud and I could hear the panic in her voice.

“Clark…everything’s not okay…did you hear the doctor? Someone has been drugging me….right under our noses and we didn’t know. Who the hell knows what that drug does…maybe it’s not supposed to hurt him…maybe it does something else! Who knows…god…he’s not even born yet and I’m failing as a mother…I can’t even protect my own child while he’s inside of me.”

I hugged her to me and made some comforting noises. Her head was buried into my neck when she spoke quietly.

“Who could do this Clark? Who would want to hurt me that much…”

She cried softly into me and my whole body tensed. Lex…he has mentioned Chloe and the baby several times…as did Lana…he was drugging Chloe…it had to be him…didn’t it? I was sure as hell gonna find out.

I moved and kissed Chloe’s head.

“Listen Chloe, can you call Lois to bring you home? There’s something I need to do…”

She gave me a strange look but dried her tears and nodded.

“Sure…be careful Clark.”

I nodded and kissed her once more before I left. I was going to the mansion and Lex was going to tell me exactly what was going on…and if he denied it…I’d just have to pursued him to tell me…it’s one thing to go after me and even Chloe but our son was innocent…he had nothing to do with this and I wouldn’t let Lex hurt him in his crusade to hurt Chloe…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  08 Dec 2007 05:04
Chapter 15 - Part B

Quote:

Chapter 15 Part B

(Lana POV)

I had changed into a smallville high t-shirt and an old pair of sweatpants. Lex was wearing a black t-shirt and gray sweats. I’d never seen him so casual before…I don’t think any one has. Even most of his pajamas were silk. But this…this was nice.

I was snuggled up next to him, with his arm around me and he was pointing at the screen in confusion while he placed more popcorn in his mouth.

“Ok…I don’t understand why they call this movie The Notebook…I mean I haven’t seen any notebooks and that girl…she is insufferable…If I were in her situation and it was you leaving I wouldn’t have let you go…I would have done whatever I needed to convince you to stay…that’s what love is…”

I chuckled. He’s been making comments like this throughout the whole movie…it was cute. I patted his arm.

“I know you would…just watch the movie. You’ll understand everything in the end.”

He shrugged and we continued to watch it. About five minutes later we heard some noises from outside in the hallway. I sat up a little and frowned at Lex.

“What is that?”

He shook his head and shushed me. He got up and listened to the commotion. Security was yelling at someone and all of a sudden the door to our bedroom burst open and Clark came storming in. One of the guards followed.

“Sir, I tried to keep him out…”

Lex waved him out and moved between Clark and me.

“Who the hell do you think you are exploding into our home like you have a right to be here. Get out. Now.”

I saw Clark advance on him and push him into the wall. His voice was hard when he spoke.

“What the hell are you playing at Lex?”

Lex shook his head.

“I have no clue what you’re talking about Clark…care to explain what you’re accusing me of this time?”

Clark’s eyebrows drew together, his eyes were closed, and his voice came out frustrated.

“I know you’ve been drugging Chloe! I don’t know how you’re doing it…and I don’t care. If anything happens to her or the baby…I swear Lex…you’ll regret it.”

Oh my god. How does he know about that? Lex wasn’t drugging her. He was using the chemicals to try and figure out what Chloe’s powers were. Lex’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

“I don’t know who told you something that preposterous but it’s not true. I have no reason to drug Chloe…and the fact that you have the audacity to accuse me of this while you barge into our home…our bedroom is unacceptable. If you don’t get out right now I’m calling the police. I can’t imagine this would look good for the new Senator of Kansas.”

Clark moved away from him and Lex brushed himself off.

“Go home and don’t come back. You are not welcome here.”

He glared at Lex glanced over at me and then turned his head back to Lex.

“If it was Lana would you leave? Would you let this go if someone had drugged her? Because I don’t think you would and trust me…I won’t either. This isn’t the end of this conversation Lex. I’m gonna find proof and when I do I hope you rot in jail for it.”

He turned on his heel and stormed out. Lex shook his head and walked over to me. I was sitting there in shock. He touched my arm and my headed whipped away from the door and to him.

“You okay?”

I nodded.

“Yea…”

He sighed.

“I’m sorry you had to see that. I don’t know how he found out. Doctor Rhinehouse wouldn’t say anything since he’s working with us…I’m at a loss. I should really look into this…I’m sorry. I know this was supposed to be our day but I have to take care of this before it gets out of hand.”

I nodded.

“It’s fine. This is important. Go and take care of it. The last thing we need is this getting out. It would affect Luthorcorp's stock and probably send you to jail… which is a bit inconvenient at the moment.”

He glanced at me and had a strange look on his face. His voice was soft.

“Have I ever told you how incredibly lucky I am to have you? No one else in this world would understand the things I do…and they’d never understand what it takes to follow through with everything…but you get it and that means so much to me.”

I smiled and leaned up to kiss him.

“Lex as long as you’re always honest with me…I’ll never give you trouble with the things you do because even though you don’t always go about doing stuff the right way…your heart is always in the right place and that’s what matters.”

He nodded kissed my forehead and left the bedroom to do some damage control. I shook my head.

Our lives would never be normal and we’d probably always have some one or other barging in on us with accusations…but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I love Lex and that’s all that mattered to me.

(Lois POV)

I was walking down the halls of Metropolis General looking for Chloe’s room. She called a few minutes ago asking if I could pick her up from here and I nearly had a heart attack. But she assured me she was fine. I finally found the room and walked in. Chloe was dressed and sitting on the bed reading the paper. That girl always had a paper in her hand. I shook my head.

“Where’s Smallville Chloe? I figured he’d be hovering at your side with you in the hospital and all.”

I noticed the worried look on her face.

“He was here…he umm had an errand to run.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“An errand? You’re in the hospital and he’s running around what…buying milk and picking up laundry?”

She smirked and carefully got off the hospital bed. I helped her out of the room and as we were on our way to my car I saw her expression grow darker.

“No. I’m pretty sure he went to look into something the doctor said earlier.”

The elevator dinged, we got out, and walked into the parking lot to my car. I frowned. Something is wrong. Chloe seems off. I hope everything is all right with the baby.

“What’s going on Chloe? Is the baby okay?”

She nodded but the look on her face was disturbed. I helped her into the car, got in and we headed back to Smallville. I glanced at her a few times on the drive back. She was quiet, which was unusual.

“Chloe…tell me what happened?”

She looked upset and when she spoke her voice was soft.

“While I was in the hospital the doctor thought it would be good to run a full blood panel just to make sure everything was alright with the baby. When he got the results back it showed chemicals in my system that shouldn’t have been there. Someone’s been drugging me and Clark…I think he went to find out who it was…”

I stared at her in shock for a full minute before turning my eyes back to the road. Someone was drugging my cousin…not if I could help it. I’m gonna find out who is doing this and I’m gonna make them pay!

We got to the farm a few hours later and when we walked in Mrs. Kent was just starting dinner. She turned when she heard the door.

“Oh Chloe honey…how are you? Lionel called and told me what happened.”

She walked over and gave Chloe a hug. I saw Chloe smile.

“I’m fine Mrs. Kent just a false alarm.”

Mrs. Kent looked over and saw me. She smiled.

“Lois it’s good to see you. Will you be staying for dinner?”

I shrugged.

“Why not.”

I sent Chloe into the living room to relax while I helped Mrs. Kent get everything ready. I glanced at the clock it was getting late. Where in the world was Clark…


(Clark POV)

I left Lex’s and sped to the farm. I’m sure Chloe would be home by now. I shook my head. I hate that he’s getting away with this. I was determined to find some kind of proof that it was Lex who drugged Chloe, but if nothing is wrong with her what are the chemicals doing?

I shook my thoughts away when I heard people laughing inside the house. I walked in and there was my mom, Lois, and Chloe sitting around the table eating dinner and laughing. I smiled.
It was moments like these that I cherished.

This is why I was constantly fighting with Lex. Chloe has been smiling less and less lately and I haven’t got a clue how to fix that. She’s been through so much and a lot of it was because of Lex. This past year and a half has made us all grow up way more than we should have.

Other people our age are out partying, going to college, living their lives the way they want. Not me…and not Chloe…and every now and then it bothers me…but Chloe…I know it bothers her everyday.
They obviously didn’t know I had come back because no one even looked my way.

“Hey.”

Everyone looked up. Chloe and my mom smiled Lois just rolled her eyes. I walked over, gave Chloe a kiss and sat next to her.

“What did you make mom?”

She got up to get me a plate.

“Fried chicken honey.”

My moms chicken was the best. Chloe got up to help my mom and Lois scooted closer to me. I raised an eyebrow at her.

“Can I help you Lois?”

She gave me a hard look.

“Yea. You can tell me what you found out about these drugs Smallville. Why wouldn’t you tell me? I know Chloe’s your wife and all but she’s my cousin…my blood. You should have said something. This is serious.”

I sighed. I knew Lois was going to give me trouble with this. I don’t want her involved in this because I didn’t want her getting hurt…thus the reason I didn’t say anything.

“Lois…I’d rather you didn’t get involved in this. I know Chloe is your cousin and I’m glad you want to help but I don’t want anything to happen to you. Plus think about Chloe…she’d be inconsolable if you got hurt or worse.”

She shook her head and frowned at me.

“Oh and she won’t care if you’re traipsing around and wined up getting yourself blown up or something? You’re just as important to Chloe as I am…we have a better shot at figuring this out if we work together.”

I knew Lois was right…but if she was around then I wouldn’t be able to use my powers and it would take me longer to do everything. Plus I wouldn’t be able to zip in and out of places undetected. But she’d never accept not being involved with this.

It was to close to her and if I was in her position and she refused to let me in I’d find my own way and that’s the last thing I wanted her to do…she could get hurt. At least if I was around I’d be able to protect her.
I sighed.

“Fine Lois you can work on this with me but I really don’t want to bother Chloe with all the details. She has enough going on right now without having to deal with this.”

I saw Lois raise an eyebrow.

“Smallville do you actually think that’s gonna fly with my cousin? She’s like the ultimate snoop…She’s gonna wanna be involved with this every step of the way.”

Again she was right…but I could convince Chloe to let me handle it…for her safety and the baby’s.

“Let me handle Chloe.”

I gave her a serious look and my voice was stern.

“Listen Lois, if you’re going to help me that’s fine…but that means we’re a team. No running off half cocked or without letting me in on what you’re doing. We do this together ok?”

She gave me a frustrated sigh but nodded.

“Ok Smallville you got a deal…hmmm us teaming up…Lois and Clark…has a quaint little ring to it doesn’t it?”

She smirked, stood up and went over to the sink to help Chloe and my mom. I shook my head. She’s crazy this was going to be a one-time thing I was not teaming up with Lois every time something bad happened…I’d rather let the world end…

(Lex POV)

I left Lana and got dressed in my normal attire. I knew the day was too good to last. I got in my car and drove out to check on how project Ares was coming along. I flipped open my phone and called doctor Rhinehouse. He answered after three rings.

“Hello, Doctor Rhinehouse speaking.”

My voice was cold.

“Hello Doctor.”

His voice held no nervousness, which seemed odd to me.

“Have you seen Clark or Chloe lately?”

“I saw them last week at their scheduled appointment. Why do you ask?”

I frowned.

“You haven’t seen them recently? Well then can you tell me how they know about the drugs we’ve been pumping into Chloe?”

He was breathing hard and his voice held a small quiver when he spoke.

“They…they know about the drugs…but how? There isn’t anyone else who knew. Well except you and your wife.”

I raised an eyebrow as I drove. If he was trying to imply that Lana said something to them he was going to die quicker then I had originally planned.

Lana would never betray me…I know that for a fact which only leave one other explanation…he must have gotten nervous and told them…


“Doctor…be very careful how you answer my next question…did you tell them? Did you possibly let it slip?”

His voice came out squeaky.

“You think I said something? I wouldn’t do that Mr. Luthor…the last time I spoke with them I told them everything was fine and on schedule which it is. I…I wouldn’t back out of our arrangement.”

He didn’t seem like he type that would lie to me. But if it wasn’t him then who could have told him? I shook my head. I turned onto the dusty road and finished my drive down to the abandoned warehouse building. There was frustration in my voice when I spoke.

“Then how? How did he find out? Is there any possible way for them to figure it out without some kind of test results stating what is in her body?”

He was quiet for a few seconds before speaking again.

“Not that I know of. I mean they drugs can only be detected if you run a full blood panel. They don’t have any kind of access or reason to do that.”

I nodded and then a thought accrued to me.

“What if she got sick or something happened and she was taken to a doctor for it…would they call you before they did any blood work on your patient?”

His voice was thoughtful.

“Well they would call me to come in if she was brought anywhere but that’s only if she gave them my name and then if they couldn’t get in touch with me they would use the doctor on call. He’d do whatever he felt necessary as long as he had her permission to do so.”

I shook my head and banged on the steering wheel as I parked. Dammit! That’s probably what happened. I couldn’t be sure but it’s the only thing that makes sense…there isn’t any other way they could have found out.

I got out of the car and walked into the facility. I slammed the phone shut on Doctor Rhinehouse and continued through the dark hallways. If they flushed that compound out of her system it was not only going to make our job a hell of a lot harder it would make it more painful for Chloe…good thing I didn’t mind hard work…

(Chloe POV)

It was early and I could hear Clark whispering on the phone. His voice sounded slightly frustrated. I moved my head slightly towards the clock. Red numbers shined back at me. 5:45. I’m gonna kill him. What was he doing up this early. He didn’t even get up this early to do farm chores and yet he’s on the phone with someone.

I perked up my ears and tried to hear the conversation. I couldn’t make out the words but it sounded like a female on the other end.

So what’s the best way to figure out what’s going on? Listen to Clark’s end of the conversation. The fact that he hadn’t noticed I was awake yet meant he was extremely occupied by whoever was on the other line.

“No…I can’t right now. Because Chloe is sleeping. If I get up and leave she’ll wonder where I went and you know how she gets. She’ll keep calling until I answer and that will only interrupt us. Yes.”

I saw his headshake and his hand slid down his face in irritation.

“No. My mom’s staying home today. She’s taking Chloe shopping. So when they go out I’ll meet up with you ok?”

I heard him sigh.

“Yes I know…I will…she doesn’t need to know…she has enough to deal with right now…I will tell her…ok yea me too. Bye.”

I heard the phone slap shut and I could feel tears building in my eyes. Was Clark cheating on me? Who was he talking to? Oh god…no…Clark wouldn’t do that. He wouldn’t risk our family for some fling…. he loves me.

He got up and started to get dressed. I sat up in bed and he must have heard me this time because he turned around and his face looked like a deer caught in headlights. He gave me a nervous grin.

“Morning…how long you been up Chloe?”

His voice was casual but I could hear the underlined tension in it. I wanted to lie…I wanted to tell him I just woke up but I couldn’t. I wanted to know who he was talking to and I never was one to shy away from the issues.

“A while…Clark…are you cheating on me?”

He sputter and then started laughing. I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for him to stop. I know he wasn’t cheating on me because Clark just wasn’t the type to do something like that…but reassurance never hurt anybody.

When he noticed I wasn’t laughing he got serious.

“Chloe…why would you ask me something like that? I take our marriage very seriously…I would never cheat on you…I love you.”

I smiled and rolled my eyes.

“I know…I just wanted to hear you say it. Now tell me my intergalactic traveler…who were you on the phone with so early in the morning?”

His stance was defeated and he gave me that sheepish half smile I love so much.

“Lois. We uh…kind of teamed up.”

I raised an eyebrow and gave him a curious look.

He sighed and came to sit on the bed by me.

“You told her about the drugs…and she wanted to help. I told her no and she threw one of her Lois fits. So I told her that she could help me but only if we work as a team…no running off and doing dangerous things on her own.”

He shrugged.

“That way she’s satisfied because she’s helping and I’m happy because I can make sure nothing happens to her. I was gonna tell you…but there’s been a lot going on and then with the false labor…I kind of just wanted you to take things easy for a while.”

He really was my hero… I placed a hand on his arm and gave him a small smile.

“I appreciate it Clark really I do…but someone has been drugging me. No one wants to find out who more than me.”

He went to say something but I cut him off.

“But I understand your concerns and they are valid. I won’t nose around into this…if you keep me updated at all times and if there is anything I can do to help from home you let me know…deal?”

He grinned and kissed me.

“I’ve never heard a better deal.”

He got back up and finished getting ready. I followed his example and got dressed.

“Why are you guys leaving so early?”

He put on his shoes and turned.

“Because we are trying to get into Doctor Rhinehouse’s office before he comes in and unlike normal people he goes in at seven in the morning.”

Weird.

“I see. Well go ahead then. Get it over with so that you can come back already.”

I started to walk out of the room when I glanced back at him.

“Oh and don’t worry your Mom and I will wait for you…I’m sure you won’t be to long.”

I grinned when I heard him groan and walked downstairs. I enjoyed bothering Clark…was that bad? I don’t think it is…it’s all apart of what makes our relationship healthy…ok and it was amusing…

(Lois POV)

Where the hell was Smallville? I glanced at my watch for the third time. It was six fifteen. This guy was gonna be here in forty-five minutes and we haven’t even searched his place yet. I felt a slight breeze by my back and I turned around and saw Clark walking up the pathway. I shook my head

“It’s about time Smallville…what took you so long?”

He glared at me.

“I was talking to Chloe. She heard our conversation this morning. She promised not to get involved if we keep her updated on everything that’s going on. Plus if there is anything that can be done from home like research or anything she wants dibs.”

I nodded. That sounded like Chloe.

“Ok let’s get this show on the road.”

I took out two paper clips and proceeded to pick the lock on the door. A few minutes later we were in. Clark moved me and insisted on going in first. I rolled my eyes but let him go. He looked around for a minute or two and then called out to me.

“All clear. You can come in Lois.”

I went in and pushed him aside.

“Of course it’s clear. What exactly were you expecting to find in the good doctors office? The boogeyman?”

He glared in my direction and I grinned.

“Just be quiet and look around Lois. We don’t have that much time.”

I shuffled through some papers on the receptionist’s desk as I spoke.

“Well whose fault it that? I called you at five-thirty. You’re the one who took forever to get here.”

He sighed and I smiled to myself. I enjoyed getting under Clark’s skin…it was too easy. I moved on to the filing cabinets when I didn’t find anything on the desk. I saw Clark disappear into the doctor’s office. I was at the letter M when I heard Clark call out to me.

“Lois…come here I think I found something.”

I moved into the room and Clark was holding a piece of paper. I glanced at it and it was an address. I raised an eyebrow at him.

“Ok…an address wow…that’s a great find Kent…”

He frowned in my direction and pointed to the letterhead. I glanced at it. It was on Luthorcorp paper. He knows Lex? That could mean…. oh no. When I looked up at Clark the worry in my eyes was mirrored by his own. His voice was hard.

“Lex…I went to see him yesterday and he claimed he had no idea what I was talking about…he’s lying I know he is. I just can’t prove it. We should check this out.”

I nodded and grabbed the paper from him.

“I’ll drive.”

We got in my car and Clark called Chloe asking her to map quest the address. Once we got the directions we headed out. About fifteen minutes later we pulled up in front of an abandoned warehouse. I glanced at Clark and he hesitated.

“Maybe we should call the police Lois…have them look into this. It could be dangerous.”

I shook my head and got out of the car.

“We’re already here…let’s go get out. Don’t get cold feet on me now Clarkie.”

He glared at me but got out and followed me to the building. When we got to the door I tried to pull it open but it wouldn’t work. Dammit! How were we gonna get in?

I saw Clark move over to the door and yank for a couple of minutes and then it popped open. I glanced up at him with a bit of shock on my face and he shrugged.

“It was stuck. You just gotta keep on pulling until it comes lose. Most of the locks on places like these have rotted away.”

I guess he was right…it makes sense. I followed him into the building we walked into the middle of the room and everything happened so fast and all at once.

I heard gunshots fired from behind me and I felt myself grabbed in strong arms. I felt a breeze in my hair and four more shots were fired but now the sound was now coming from in front of me. I heard people yelling, guns hitting the ground, footsteps running, and the doors slamming shut. I still felt the arms around me and I turned my head up to see Clark looking down on me.

I could see his lips moving but I couldn’t hear him. I shook my head and his voice came into focus. It sounded frantic.

“Lois…Lois…are you ok?”

My mouth dropped open and I took a step back from him. There were two bullet holes in the front of his shirt and as I walked around him with my eyes wide I saw another three shots in his back. Oh my god…they shot Clark…and he’s still standing.

He reached his arm out cautiously. His voice was hesitant.

“Lois I can explain…”

I looked at the floor and saw the bullets all on the ground and crushed. Oh my god…all this time I thought Clark was some weird insignificant farmboy…but now…holy crap…he was…bullet proof?

I finally met his eyes and he looked worried. My mouth open and closed a few times before I got any words out. My voice held awe and I spoke in a disbelieving tone.

“What…what are you?”

He gave me a nervous chuckle.

“Funny you should ask that…”

Funny…No…funny was going to be when I told Chloe her husband was some kind of Bionic man…oh man…so many more things made sense now…and to think I never even expected Clark to be anything but normal…and owe he’s normal alright…if he was from some far off galaxy…I couldn’t wait to hear his explanation for this one…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  08 Dec 2007 05:12
Chapter 15 - Part C

Quote:

Chapter 15 Part C

(Clark POV)

Oh boy…this was not good…how the hell was I going to get out of this one?

Lois was standing there waiting for my response. I took a deep breath.

“Maybe we should get out of here and go back to the farm…”

I saw her head shaking already. Her voice was stern.

“Not so fast Smallville. What. Is. Going. On?”

I shuffled my feet back and forth.

“I really would prefer telling you about this someplace else. Can we at least get in your car a head back towards the farm?”

She glared at me but nodded. I followed her out and we got in her car. On the way home she kept looking over at me. Ok…relax it’s not that big of a deal. I could find a way to cover this up. Ok maybe I couldn’t…by the look Lois keeps shooting me I wasn’t getting out of this one any time soon. Chloe! She’d know what to do.

The next time Lois looked at me I gave her a half smile.

All of a sudden the car veered to the side of the road. We jerked to a stop and I raised an eyebrow. She turned her body to me.

“Ok…that’s it. I want answers…”

When she saw that I was going to say something she cut me off.

“No Smallville…I want answers now. No excuses. Let’s have it.”

Could I tell Lois? Would I be able to trust her in the long run? Could she handle the truth if I told her? Chloe trusts her…I had my answer. I took a deep breath and turned to face he as much as I could in her car.

“Lois…if I tell you this…I mean really tell you what’s going on you’re going to have to promise me you wont ever say anything. This secret…it’s a huge responsibility and it can be dangerous sometimes. If you tell anyone what I’m about to tell you…people would come after me…and then possibly Chloe. If you don’t think that you can handle keeping a secret this big tell me know before I say anything else.”

She looked at me cautious at first and swallowed hard. After the briefest moment of hesitation she spoke.

“Clark…I would never put my cousin in danger…but if you expect me to lie to “her…”

I smiled and shook my head.

“Chloe already knows…she’s known for the past three years.”

I chuckled. I can’t believe Lois didn’t think Chloe knew…

“Chloe’s the original investigative reporter of the family Lois…she had my card a long time ago and I probably should have trusted her with my secret long before I actually did.

She nodded and gave me a small smirk.

“Of course Chloe knows…that’s why she’s always covering for you…huh…I can’t believe I never realized it. This…secret…who else knows?”

I sighed.

“My mother…Chloe…Lionel…and…”

I hesitated on the last name because I didn’t want to upset Lois but I suppose she had to know.

“And Oliver.”

Her eyes widened and her voice grew hard.

“Oliver knows? So what everyone is in on the secret except me?

Oh boy…she’s mad. You know…some how this is so Lois…I haven’t even gotten to tell her my secret yet and already she was pissed at me.

“Lois…forget about that for right now. You can yell at me later. You still haven’t answered my question. Can you handle having a secret this big? A secret that if you let slip my life could be in danger?”

She looked thoughtful and then I saw determination cross her face. She nodded.

“Clark…you are my cousin’s husband…you have always been there when I needed you…I won’t admit this to anyone else but you’re my friend…and you are a good man…there isn’t anything that can change my opinion of you. You can trust me. That’s what this is about right? Trust?”

She was waiting for my confirmation so I nodded.

“Yes…”

She gave me a tight smile.

“I won’t betray my cousin…she loves you so much and if anything happened to you…I really don’t know what she’d do. I can handle whatever you’re gonna throw me Smallville…so lets have it.”

Ok…well here goes nothing…Lois was about to become a member of the I know an alien club.

I took a deep breath.

“No interruptions got it?”

She rolled her eyes and nodded for me to continue.

“During the first Meteor shower…more crashed in Smallville than just Meteors.”

She gave me a strange look and I continued.

“A ship carrying a young boy crashed down also…I was on that ship. Lois…I’m from a planet called Krypton…I’m…not human. Not really anyway. I have…certain abilities that normal people obviously don’t have. I can…I can run kind of fast…I have…heat vision and x-ray vision…I have super hearing…and I’m kind of invincible. So umm yea…that’s everything…”

Lois’s mouth was wide open. She was gonna catchflies if she didn’t close it.

Then the strangest thing happened. She started laughing. I scrunched up my brows and frowned. Why was she laughing? Crap she thinks I’m joking…

“Lois…I’m being serious…”

She chuckled and held a hand to her mouth.

“Sure…you…are...humph…Smallville. An alien…hehehe. Good one. Now tell me the truth. Were you infected by the Meteor rocks?”

I shook my head. She was starting to irritate me. What was her problem? I mean ok I guess it was kind of surreal that I was claiming to be an alien…well intergalactic traveler but it was true. If she didn’t believe me I was going to have to show her.

I opened my car door and looked in the passenger side window.

“Get out of the car Lois.”

She stopped laughing and frowned.

“Why?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Just do it.”

She got out and I walked over to her. I eyed her for a minute before speaking.

“Do you trust me?”

She raised an eyebrow and was about to say something sarcastic by the look in her face so I cut her off.

“No…whatever you’re gonna say just stop. Do you trust me?”

She nodded.

“Yea…I guess so…”

I smiled. I pointed to the tree behind her and she turned. I concentrated and used my heat vision to set it on fire. Once it caught and flames were billowing I glanced at Lois.

She looked shocked. I got her attention and she glanced at me. I grinned then I super sped to the tree an put the flames out with my hands.

I sped back to her and stood there. I saw her face pale. And my smiled left. I gave her a worried look.

“Lois…Lois you ok?”

She looked around and shook her head.

“I need to sit down.”

I nodded. I helped her to the car and we got back in.

It was quiet.

We didn’t go anywhere. We just sat in the car silently. It was about another twenty minutes before she spoke. Her voice was soft.

“So…an alien huh? Well Chloe’s taste in men just got a whole lot weirder…and I thought she was in love with some small town farmboy.”

She glanced over at me and gave me a small grin.

“So I guess I can’t call you Smallville anymore huh?”

I chuckled.

“Thanks Lois for...you know...being you…we should…get going…I gotta go home and tell Chloe you know…or maybe you could. I know she hated not being able to talk to you about this. I know how close you to are.”

She nodded and started up the car. As we drove down the road her voice was disturbed when she spoke. She was looking at the road.

“That’s why Lex is always investigating you isn’t it? And why you’ve always held back from Lana? You were protecting your secret. He’ll lock you up and throw away the key if he knew about you…wouldn’t he?”

She glanced briefly at me.

I didn’t look at her.

“Probably.”

She nodded and the look on her face turned hard.

“Don’t worry Clark…we won’t let that happen…”

I smiled.

Lois drove me insane, she was rude, obnoxious, and always had a come back for everything. But right now…I’m glad to have her on my side…because nothing is more important to Lois than family…and even though neither of us would ever admit this out loud…we are family now…

(Lana POV)


I was packing a bag. I walked over to the closet door and pulled out a bunch of clothes. I was tossing them into my bag when I heard a knock on the door. It was probably Lex. It was time…and we had to make this look convincing incase Clark snooped around to see if I was lying.

I took a deep breath. I could do this.

“It’s open.”

Lex walked in and gave me a small smile. I turned away from him and continued packing my bag. He gave me a confused look.

“Lana what are you doing?”

I didn’t answer him and there was another knock on the door. One of the servants walked in and Lex half turned to face them.

“No…not right now.”

“But Mr. Luthor…”

He shook his head and I finally faced him. He was standing in my way. My eyes squinted and I spoke in a cold voice.

“Get out of my way.”

“Lana…”

His voice was gentle and it made me wanna cry. Anyone who said Lex was a bad actor…obviously didn’t know him very well. I shook my head and started to walk forward.

“No. Get out of my way Lex! I’m leaving.”

The guy was still standing at the door frozen he didn’t know where to go. Lex moved over to me and placed his hand on my shoulder I shrugged it off.

“Lana what’s going on? Why is your bag packed?”

I glared in his direction.

“How can you stand there and lie to me? How could you do it Lex? I have stood by you through everything I’ve never questioned your motives and I backed you through the whole Chloe and Clark thing even though they were my friends.”

I shook my head and looked down. I needed to just take a deep breath. Lex was counting on me. I could do this. When I looked back up my face was hard.

“It’s one thing to do whatever you were doing to Chloe…we needed answers I get that. But you promised me…you promised me you weren’t hurting her baby. That is an innocent child in there!”

I shook my head. When I looked up at him again I had tears in my eyes.

“The only thing I ever asked for from you is that you were honest with me. And you couldn’t even do that…Get out of my way Lex…Now or I swear to god I’ll move you myself.”

I saw the pain on Lex’s face and I wanted to cry. He moved slightly to the left and I stormed out of the room as fast as I could at my size. The man in the doorway didn’t know who to stay with so I made his decision for him.

“Derek go tell the chauffer to get the limo ready now please.”

He glanced at Lex and when he didn’t object Derek went ahead of me and called out.

“Yes Mrs. Luthor…right away.”

I took one last glance at Lex. His back was facing me and it seemed tense. I walked outside in front of the mansion and waited for the limo to pull around.

When it did Derek helped me in and we took off. The driver asked me where to. I glanced at the mansion one more time and closed my eyes. I spoke tersely.

“The Kent farm.”

The driver nodded and off we went. I felt sick…this wasn’t right and I hate that Lex asked me to do this. It’s one thing to help him with planning what’s going to happen but it’s another all together to be the one to drag Chloe into 33.1.

I remember how one of her biggest fears was always to be locked up somewhere…like her mother was and here I am the iceberg to her titanic…I’d be the one to make her nightmare a reality…I wasn’t sure how I felt about that…but it didn’t matter how I felt because I gave my word to Lex…and he was counting on me.


(Chloe POV)

I was sitting on the porch when I saw Lois’s car pull into the driveway. I smiled. Jeez it took them long enough. They were gone for hours. I thought the guy was supposed to come back at 7. I shook my head and watched them get out of the car.

Clark looked a little tense but when he saw me I saw a smile light up his face. Lois was trailing behind him and when they finally reached me on the porch I was taking a sip of my iced tea. Lois grinned at me as I was drinking and spoke.

“So Chloe, when were you going to tell me about your husband’s extraterrestrial nature? After the baby is born? Or when he decided to go Independence Day on the planet?”

I spit out my iced tea as my eyes widened to the size of saucers. Her voice was playful and I saw a strained smile on Clarks face. I was speechless…I had absolutely nothing to say to that. I mean what do you say to that honestly?

My mouth opened and closed a few times before anything came out.

“What?”

Lois shook her head.

“Oh no cuz…you can’t feign innocence I saw what your super husband over here could do…”

She waggled her eyebrows and smirked.

“I wonder what else he can do…no wonder you keep him around…”

I saw Clark’s cheeks flush red and I gaped at Lois. Oh my god!

“Lois! This…this is serious.”

I looked at Clark.

“You told her?”

He gave me a look and rolled his eyes.

“Obviously. But it was completely unintentional. We ran into a little situation and unfortunately Lois wasn’t unconscious this time…”

I leaned over and slapped him lightly at the same time that Lois did. He winced and I rolled my eyes.

“That isn’t nice Clark.”

He shrugged.

“I tried to lie but it didn’t really work that well…so yeah.”

I shook my head. Of course it didn’t work…Clark was a horrible liar. I sighed and glanced over at Lois. She seemed to be taking this well…I would have thought she would have freaked out.

“So…you know the big secret now Lo…what are you gonna do with it?”

She looked hurt for a second before understanding washed over her face. She sat next to me and put a hand on mine.

“Chloe…you’re my cousin…more than that…you’re like a sister to me. I would never try and rip apart your family. Clark might be a little weird and completely dorky…and a bit ridiculous...”

Clark interjected.

“Hey!”

I smiled and Lois ignored him and continued.

“But he is your husband…and you two are gonna be having a baby soon. Plus…”

She glanced at Clark for a minute and then moved her head closer to mine and lowered her voice.

“He’s kind of like the older brother I never wanted or needed. He uses his…. gifts…or whatever to help people. As far as I’m concerned he’s a lot more human then some of the people in this world. So your secret…it’s safe with me…always Chloe…I’ll take it to my grave.”

I had tears in my eyes and I smiled. I grabbed Lois in a hug.

“I’m so glad you know Lo…I hated keeping this from you but I couldn’t betray Clark…”

She nodded her head.

“I get it…but now I’m in…got it…no more secrets?”

She looked back and forth between me and Clark and we both nodded. Lois was fiercely loyal and she’d be a great asset to us. Maybe now she could even work this out with a certain someone who has a green leather fetish. Hmmm that’s something to think about.

I heard the gravel crackling so I glanced up only to see one of the Luthor limo’s heading our way. I placed a hand over my stomach and Clark stood up with extreme anger on his face. Lois was the next person to stand and she placed herself directly between the Limo and me. It stopped.

The two of them were practically on top of me.

I stood up and saw the door to the limo open. What I saw shocked the hell out of me. There stood a very pregnant, very distraught Lana. There were tears coursing down her cheeks and her hand was pressed over her stomach and I could see the slight shaking.

What in the world…why was Lana here? She looked…destroyed…oh my god…did Lionel tell her what he’s been holding over Lex? Did she finally leave him?

I shook my head. No…it was to easy…that couldn’t be it…I will not put my guard down…she isn’t that girl anymore…the one I considered a sister. That girl is gone. She’s a Luthor now…and Luthor's were devious plotters…I wouldn’t let myself fall for that…

She walked over to the three of us and shook her head. Her face landed on me and more tears brimmed in her eyes.

“Chloe…I know…I know I’ve done horrible things…thing’s I can never come back from. I don’t expect you to forgive me…or even believe me…but I am so sorry…Lex…he…he lied to me…I told him all he ever had to do was be honest with me and I’d be by his side…forever…and…and he couldn’t even do that…”

I saw her face crumple and she broke down. Clark glanced at me and frowned. He had no clue what to do. I could see that a part of him wanted to comfort her but the other part was weary. She composed herself a bit before speaking again.

“There’s something you have to know…Lex…he’s building an army…he…he when…when it’s finished…he’s coming for you Chloe…. God…he promised me he wouldn’t hurt you’re baby he swore…he also promised we were researching to help cure the Meteor freaks…he said he had to experiment on them so he could figure out how to cure them I believed him...I had no reason not to...But…He…he lied. That isn’t what he’s doing…I just…I thought you should know. I should...probably go. I’m leaving town…”

She placed a hand over her belly and shook her head.

“I need to leave…he’ll fight me for my baby and I won’t let Lex have him.”

She glanced over at Clark. Her voice was broken and soft.

“You were right Clark…that isn’t a place I want my child growing up…I made so many mistakes and I hope that one day…you’ll all be able to if not forgive me…at least understand why I did it. I should go…”

She went to step down the porch when something made me stop her. I don’t know what it was…I mean maybe it was hope that the girl I loved like a sister was still there somewhere, or maybe it was pity…but I couldn’t let her leave like that…we help people…or at least we try to…

If we started discriminating against who we helped because we didn’t like them or what they did in the past it would be the same thing as leaving someone heartless or evil like Lex to die…it would make us the same as them…and I would never forgive myself if that happened.


“Lana wait…”

Clark and Lois both turned to me. Lois with a look that said I was nuts and Clark with a mixture of pride and hesitance.

“If you’re serious about leaving Lex and you need a place to stay until you can get out of town then you can stay with us. Things between us are nowhere near ok…and I don’t trust you. But you have a baby inside of you that doesn’t deserve my hate or distrust. I won’t throw you out there and let something happen to him because I’m mad at you.”

I sighed and shook my head at everyone’s perplexed expressions.

“I’ll never forget what you helped do to me…or my family…but maybe with time…I’ll be able to forgive. Until then I’m sure we can be under the same roof without killing each other…so what do you say…Truce again...for now?”

She gave me a tiny barely there smile and nodded.

“Thank you Chloe…you’re a better person then I ever thought anyone could be. You can’t imagine how much I appreciate this.”

I nodded and looked at Clark.

“Babe…can you help Lana with her luggage? Your mom was called out of town for a while so she can stay in her room.”

He stood there for a few seconds. I saw pride in her eyes. He kissed me on the forehead and moved toward the limo. Lois stood there and sighed.

“Well I guess were ordering take out tonight…Pizza or Chinese?”

She walked into the house as she spoke and I laughed. Lana gave a small smile as we followed Lois inside. Clark brought up the rear and went to put her things down.

I really hope I was making the right decision…if I would have let her leave I would have been no different than what Clark and I were always trying to fight. She only gets one chance while she’s here though. If I suspect anything even for a second…she’s gone. I’ll help her. But I wont’ risk my life or the lives of the people I love for her…I just hope I don’t wined up regretting this decision…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
Posted:  08 Dec 2007 05:24
Chapter 16 - Part A

Quote:

Chapter 16 Part A

(Lex POV)

The monitors were all set up. I could see them positioning the Luthorcorp satellite. The screen switched to a section of the underground tunnels that I wasn’t in. I saw our team of soldiers preparing for a firefight as sires all around us blared. We were in the Project Ares headquarters and about to do a test run. The microphones were set up so we could communicate with the team and know what their progress was.

I walked out into the tunnel and stood by Bartlett. He was making sure everything was secure and that all of our men were where they were supposed to be in case of a breech.

Unfortunately the only thing I could think of was Lana…She should be here right now…well not here but involved in this. I mean we have been working on this together from the beginning. I haven’t been able to speak to her in thirteen days…it feels so much longer than that though…

When I heard Bartlett speaking it knocked me out of my thoughts and I turned my attention to the project.

“Take your squad. Sweep the perimeter.”

I heard the security guard leader speak in a commanding tone.

“Go.”

My voice came out loud even to my ears.

“What's our status?”

Bartlett spoke with caution.

“Security breach -- Northeast sector.”

I nodded.

“What have the surveillance cameras picked up?”

He spoke with a mixture of fear and pride.

“Not a damn thing.”

I banged my hand on the wall softly and my voice was harsh.

“Anything comes down this tunnel, kill it.”

I walked quickly away from all the commotion and then into the command center where the lead scientist for 33.1 was waiting. I spoke in a commanding tone.

“Contact?”

As we watched the computer terminals, the threat level raised into successive sections of our facility. The surveillance camera for each section was quickly turning to static as the word compromised popped up.

Bartlett spoke with a heavy voice.

“Tunnel 7. Wait.”

The computer turned up and spoke.

“Section "F" compromised.”

Dammit! I shook my head.

“Lock it down.”

I could hear the sirens continuing to blare behind me as I watched the firefight on the monitors. The computer spoke again.

“ Section "D" Compromised.”

I could hear the gunfire as Bartlett spoke in a concerned voice.

“That's only 30 meters from here.”

The computer with its irritating voice spoke up yet again. I was about three seconds from breaking it in half.

“Section "C" Compromised.”

As we watched the screen Bartlett counted down the how far the intruder was from the command center.

“20 meters. 10.”

The computer was barely audible now over all the yelling and gunfire.

“Section "B" Compromised.”

The scientist next to me started to get nervous. His voice came out quiet.

“Maybe this wasn't such a good idea.”

“Section "A" Compromised.”

Again with the damn computer…I pulled out my gun as the door to the command center burst open and I emptied a clip on the intruder. The bullets were stopped in mid air by a force field which advanced on me. I took a few steps back.

Then all of a sudden a soldier appeared, uncloaking himself . he turned on me and then stopped. Wes Keenan stood before me. his voice robotic when he spoke.

“Mission accomplished. Standing by for further instructions.”

The scientist next to me was losing his nervousness as he spoke to me.

“Vitals are steady. He didn't even break a sweat.”

I grinned. Of course he didn’t…He was after all project Ares…Wes Keenan…the unstoppable soldier. I nodded. My voice came out smug but well trained.

“2 minutes, 18 seconds to infiltrate a secured facility, disable my best men, and eliminate the target.”

I chuckled. Lana would surely be impressed. I turned back to face the scientist and Bartlett.

“Not a bad test run. Get some fresh guards. I want to see him do it again”

And again we’d do it…until I was sure it was perfect. Soon he’d be out doing my bidding, Lana…would be home with me and Chloe…Chloe would be my newest member of 33.1…

(Clark POV)

It’s been thirteen days since Lana moved in. Well temporarily moved in. I have to admit that when she first came here…I thought it was all some plan to get to Chloe…to get to me.

But as the days have gone on she’s been feeding us information on Lex’s projects. Telling us what she knows. Granted we learned a lot from the files Lionel gave us but still it was helpful.

Lately I have been seeing the old Lana…the one that Chloe and I loved. I have been keeping a close eye on her though…making sure she isn’t up to something and from the looks of it so far she hasn’t made one move against us…I was starting to think that this…her leaving Lex was really true…

I walked into the kitchen and saw my mother cooking while Chloe and Lana lounged in chairs at the table. I smiled. Chloe looked radiant. She’s almost nine months along and her due date is in a week and two days. I’m nervous…Chloe’s been a real trooper through everything.

She’s been taking it easy lately, she already started her maternity leave from The Planet so she’s been going a little stir crazy. But I keep her entertained as much as I can. We have a doctor’s appointment today and I think Lana does also. So I’m taking both of them…I have to say it’s a little weird to have my pregnant ex girlfriend in my house.

I’ve been wondering if Lex knows Lana is here. I mean I’m sure he does but I half expected him to walk in the door any minute.
I was startled out of my thoughts when I heard Chloe speaking to me. her voice was soft and calm.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

I smiled and shook my head slightly. I walked into the kitchen and kissed my mom on the cheek. I came to the table and sat by Chloe. I placed a hand behind her chair kissed her good morning and rubbed her stomach a bit.

“Nothing just thinking. We have a doctor’s appointment in Metropolis with Dr. Roberts today. Remember the doctor who saw you when Lionel brought you into the hospital a few weeks back?”

I saw her nod and Lana placed a hand over her mouth. When her voice came out it was concerned.

“Lionel brought you into the hospital? That must have been scary. Is everything alright?”

I saw Chloe looking a bit uncomfortable but she nodded.

“Yea…it was just Braxton Hicks contractions. The doctor told me to take it easy for a little while but everything would be fine.”

Lana nodded and lifted her drink to take a sip. Her voice was reassuring and calm when she spoke next.

“Something similar happened to me. Well I mean I wasn’t having contractions or anything but it was pretty bad I was rushed to the hospital and I’ve been on bed rest ever since. I’m only aloud out of bed for five to six hours a day.”

The look on Chloe’s face was stricken. She spoke with compassion.

“Is that why you aren’t up that much around here?”

Lana nodded and rubbed her stomach.

“Yup…it’s a pain and extremely boring but in the end I know it’ll be worth it.”

My mom put some food down in front of us and the girls started digging into their plates. I chuckled softly and Chloe slapped me.

“Don’t be a jerk Clark Jerome Kent…or you’ll be sleeping on the couch.”

I put up my hands up in defeat. My mom smiled at the scene in front of her. She glanced at me and I caught her eye. She spoke in a clear tone.

“I have to get going. You’ll be alright with me gone for a few days won’t you?”

I grinned at her.

“We’ll be fine Mom. Knock ‘em dead at the senate meeting.”

She smiled and gave Chloe and I each a kiss before waving to Lana and leaving.

“What time is our appointment today Clark?”

I scrunched up my face trying to remember. I knew this…crap…

“Ummm…oh two o’clock.”

I glanced at Lana.

“When’s yours Lana?”

She looked down at her food.

“Three.”

I nodded. I think we're all going to the same place so Lana could just come with us when we left. I looked back over at her and she still hadn’t raised her head. Chloe must have noticed also because she spoke before I could.

“You alright Lana?”

She gave a soft shake of her head and looked up with teary eyes. I swear Chloe and Lana cry more than anyone I’ve ever met in my life. You know it’s bad when I’d rather be hanging out with Lois then sitting with the blubbering twins. I love Chloe but I had absolutely no idea what to do when she started to get hysterical.

“Yea…yea I’m fine…I just…”

She shrugged.

“This is the first doctor’s appointment I’ll be going to alone…I just feel so…so alone…I’m sorry you guys. I’m just gonna…I'm gonna go outside for a little bit.”

She got up and slowly walked outside onto the front porch closing the door behind her. I heard Chloe sigh next to me. She glanced in my direction and I smiled at her. Her voice quivered slightly.

“Clark promise me…promise you won’t leave me…no matter what happens say you’ll always be there…”

I frowned. What was bringing this on. What would make her think that I was going anywhere? I took her hand in mine and brought it to my lips.

“Chloe…I have no clue what you’re afraid of…or what’s been bothering you lately…but I don’t plan on going anywhere any time soon. You have nothing to worry about…I’m here…I’m yours…and I’m not going anywhere. I promise you…”

She seemed satisfied with that for now and she gave me a small smiled and leaned in to kiss me. I accepted the kiss and when I saw that she was trying to get up I helped her.

“I should start getting ready. I think Lois is stopping by in a bit. I know she wanted to come to the appointment with us plus I think she wanted to talk to you about Oliver.”

I groaned. Lois has been trying to get out of me for days how Oliver found out about me and if I still talk to him…it’s tiring. Chloe just chuckled and went upstairs to get ready. I sighed. Today was going to be a long day…

(Lex POV)

I was sitting at my desk looking at the calendar. Today was Lana’s last appointment before her due date…and I wouldn’t be there…maybe this whole thing was a bad idea…on the other hand if they hadn’t believed her I’m sure she would have called me by now. My thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. Bartlett opened the door and stuck his head in.

“Sir, Senator Burke has arrived.”

I nodded. Just in time…I had to concentrate…Lana would be home soon.

“Show him in.”

He brought him in and then closed the door behind us. His voice was tempered.

“I hope I didn't interrupt anything important…where is that lovely wife of yours?”

I almost rolled my eyes. People have been asking me that a lot lately. I’ve been telling them that she's visiting her aunt Nell. It’s worked so far. Lana sure has made quite an impression on my employees and business partners…it made me love her even more than I already did.

“Not at all Senator…and my wife is visiting family for a little bit…relaxing the pregnancy has been rough on her.”

He nodded.

“I'm sorry to hear that. I won’t keep you longer than needed. I just, uh... swung by for an update on Ares”

Of course he did.

“The prototype is in the final stages of testing. Everything's on schedule.”

He looked at me skeptical for a second before puffing out his chest.

“Really? I heard everything was ahead of schedule -- way ahead. I stuck my neck out to get the Armed Services Committee to allow you access to military resources and personnel to R&D a single prototype, but you've started gearing up for mass production.”

Hmm this wasn’t good. One of my little birdies must be spreading too much information…that or he has someone watching us. I’d have to take care of that. I shrugged.

“Just looking towards the future, Senator. I assumed a visionary like you would understand that.”

His shook his head and his voice came out gruff.

“How long do you think you're gonna be able to keep what you've really got going on here a secret? See... one of my own men believed he uncovered a mole right in your backyard.”

A mole…please…no one was stupid enough to betray me. Not if they wanted to keep their life.

“Who?”

He gives me a dark smirk and shrugs.

“Well, I wish I could tell you, but my boy doesn't talk too good with a bullet through his heart.”

I chuckled. That was amusing…my voice held a sternness when I spoke.

“Senator, if there are leaks in my security, I assure you, I will have them taken care of.”

His voice came out hard.

“Well, doesn't that just fill me with the warm fuzzies? Do you know what'll happen to me if the Senate ever got wind of what you're up to now?”

I sighed.

“I assume they wouldn't care for it... just like they wouldn't care for all the money I've transferred into your Cayman account over the last year.”

The look on his face was hard and his voice took on a commanding tone.

“Project Ares is over. I'm shutting it down.”

Who was he kidding…did he really think that he had any say over this project? If he did then he was delusional. I spoke calmly but tension underlined my voice.

“That would be ill-advised.”

“No. What's ill-advised is you ever opening your mouth about our arrangement. I so much as hear a peep out of you, I'll make sure the Committee reviews every business deal Luthorcorp has made in the last 20 years, and you'll be lucky to keep that fancy shirt on your back. Do we understand each other... Luthor?”

My body tensed and my eyes turned cold. My voice was hard when I spoke to him.

“Perfectly.”

As he walked out Bartlett came into the room and I spoke to him in a cool manner.

“Get the head scientist of Project Ares on the phone…tell hi I have Wes’s first target.”

“Yes Mr. Luthor sir.”

He left the room. I don’t know who Senator Burke thought he was dealing with but I wasn’t one of his lackeys. He worked for me not the other way around…and he just got himself killed. No one threatens me and lives to tell the tale…he’ll be dead before sunset…

(Chloe POV)

We were on our way to Metropolis…the three of us didn’t fit in Clark’s truck so Lois offered to drive us there. So here we were driving to Metropolis, all of us. Lois and Lana were sitting in the front and Clark and I were in the back. I was about to break the silence but Lois beat me to it.

“So…how do you like living with to pregnant females Smallville? They giving you a run for your money?”

I saw her glance at him through the rearview mirror. A small smile appeared on my face and I heard Lana chuckle. Clark glared at Lois.

“Very funny Lois it’s not nearly as annoying as living with you.”

He grinned and she scoffed at him. I rolled my eyes and spoke good humouredly.

“Knock it off children. We only have another fifteen minutes or so until we’re at the hospital. Can the two of you try to get along until we get there?”

Clark frowned and mumbled to himself and Lana’s laughter got louder.

“Is that all you two do? Fight?”

She shook her head and glanced over her shoulder at me.

“How do you put up with them?”

I shrugged.

“I have an overwhelming amount of patients.”

She smirked and turned back around. About ten minutes later we arrived at Metropolis General. Lois pulled up front and Clark got out. He helped Lana out and then came over and helped me out. he shut the door and stuck his head in Lois’s passenger window.

“You good parking the car or you want to take the girls in and I’ll find a spot?”

I couldn’t see her but I heard her.

“No. I got it Smallville. You get them up there and I’ll be there in a minute.”

He nodded and as the three of us were walking right before we got into the lobby we were bombarded by reporters snapping pictures. I turned my face into Clark and he was trying to move the photographers away from Lana and I. One of them yelled out to Lana.

“Mrs. Luthor…Mrs. Luthor…there are reports that you’ve moved out of the Luthor mansion…is there trouble in paradise? Sources say you’re leaving Lex for an old flame…that the baby isn’t really Lex’s…Do you have any comments…Mrs. Luthor…”

He practically knocked her over. Clark moved him away from Lana and pulled her closer to us. Another reporter shouted out to Clark and I.

“Mr. Kent….there are allegations that you’re leaving your pregnant wife for Mrs. Luthor…is it true? Do the two of you still have feelings for each other? What does the senator think of all of this? Have you heard from Senator Kent since the plane crash this morning? Is she alright?”

What? A plane crash… Lana and I both gasped when we heard that. Clark looked at the reporter confused. He was trying to keep them from taking pictures of us but there were too many.

They were shooting off questions left and right. I felt my heart start to beat erratically and I got dizzy. I tried to shake it off but it just got worse. My voice was soft under all the other noise but I knew Clark would hear me.

“Clark…don’t let me fall…”

Everything around me was spinning and I felt myself falling as everything went black…

(Lana POV)

As the light flashed in my eyes I saw Chloe’s body falling to the ground. I screamed out to Clark.

“CLARK!”

His head whipped around and all of a sudden he had Chloe in his arms. I blinked. Wasn’t he further away then that? It thought…I don’t know what I thought. These reporters were vultures. And what did they mean plan crash…oh god I hope Mrs. Kent as ok.

I felt someone grab onto my arm and I looked up into Clark’s face. He looked like he was struggling to hold onto Chloe and keep me buy him. We were trying to get through the mob of reporters and photographers. I wish Lex was here… Clark’s shouting brought me back to reality. I don’t think I’ve ever heard his voice so hard.

“Get out of the way! Move…My wife needs a doctor…”

He was pulling me with him and I started to feel a cramp in my abdomen. I stopped and bent over holding my stomach. Oh god…no not now… My voice came out frantic.

“Clark!”

He turned to look at me and saw the pain of my face. He looked conflicted. He didn’t know what to do.

“Dammit.”

He glanced at the flashing cameras.

“I have two woman here who need medical attention…you have to move out of the way!”

I heard another voice calling out to Clark that sounded familiar. I turned slightly and saw Lois and Lionel coming towards us. Two very large security guards flanked Lionel. As soon as Lois saw Chloe she ran.

“What happened?”

Clark’s voice was frustrated and scared all at the same time.

“I don’t know…we were bombarded by all the reporters…Chloe passed out and Lana’s hurt…I can’t get through.”

I saw Lois pushing some people out of the way.

“Just push through them Smallville.”

He gave her a stern look.

“I’m trying Lois but I can’t…I don’t want to hurt them.”

The way he said it made me wonder what he meant until another wave of pain struck me. Dammit…how do these things always happen to me…I can’t do this by myself…I need Lex…

(Clark POV)

I had my head in my hands. I was sitting in the small plastic chair that I was too big for and I felt like this was déjà vu all over again. Lionel’s bodyguards helped get the people out of the way so we could get Chloe and Lana into the hospital. When we finally got in they were both admitted immediately.

Lionel told me about the plane crash…he assured me my mother was fine. She didn’t take that plane she was on a private jet from Luthorcorp. No wonder they couldn’t find her… He said he thought the flight was sabotaged. Another thing to worry about.

Lois was sitting next to me with her head leaning on one hand and the other hand on top of mine.

Lionel was standing waiting to here from the doctors. I shook my head. I lifted up my head and I saw Dr. Rhinehouse come out of Chloe’s room. I stood up and glared at him.

“What are you doing?”

He smiled at me.

“Hello Mr. Kent. Chloe is going to me just fine…she had a small stress induced panic attack…but everything is fine she should be up and ready to go soon. Mrs. Luthor is changing and should be out in a minute.”

My voice was hard as I moved closer to him.

“I don’t want you anywhere near my wife! You stay away from her…you’re the one whose been drugging her haven’t you? There isn’t anyone who’s been closer to her then you…”

Lois and Lionel both tried to pull me away from him when security and another doctor came over.

“What is going on here? Mr. Kent is that you?”

I heard him sigh.

“Why is it that every time you’re in my hospital you’re causing a scene?”

I turned to him.

“I don’t want this doctor near my wife. I think he drugged her. The last time we were here Dr. Roberts said there were drugs in her system he was helping us figure out what happened. Her appointment was with him today.”

The doctor gave me a sad look.

“I’m sorry Mr. Kent…but Dr. Roberts was in a car accident the other day…he didn’t make it.”

My head was spinning. He didn’t make it? Lex…that was the only explanation for all of this. I looked up and saw Lana come out of her room. She glanced up and looked confused.

“What’s going on?”

I stayed quiet and Lionel spoke up.

“Nothing Lana. Everything is fine. Why don’t you come and sit down?”

Dr. Rhinehouse was led slowly away from by the other doctor. I was waiting on Chloe I needed to see that she was ok. I felt Lois squeeze my arm so I looked over at her and she had a smile on her face.

I gave her a confused look and she pointed to the other side of the room. I glanced over and saw Chloe slowly making he way over to us. I ran over and hugged her as tight as I could without hurting her.

“You scared me…don’t ever do it again..”

She gave me a small chuckled and then got serious.

“Is your Mom ok? I heard what those reporters said.”

I nodded and smiled.

“She’s fine. She was on Lionel’s jet…no worries.”

As we were all standing there I heard shuffling and I glanced over to my left just as Lex was making his way around the corner. He saw Lana and ran over to her frantically.

“Lana…oh god Lana are you ok?”

She turned away from him and spoke.

“Go home Lex…I told you we’re done. I don’t want anything to do with you.”

He frowned and turned her to face him.

“Lana I was worried sick. The hospital called me said you were having problems…I just…I wanted to make sure you and the baby are ok.”

She gave him a hard look.

“The baby and I aren’t your concern anymore. After everything you’ve done I’m surprised you even care…leave…please…just leave me alone.”

She turned around and he grabbed her arm again and I saw her wince. That was the last straw…Lana was finally standing up for herself and leaving Lex…I wasn’t gonna let him hurt her. I walked over there and stood by her side. I pushed Lex’s hand off her and glared at him. My voice was cold when I spoke.

“She doesn’t want you around Lex…leave her alone. Stay away from Chloe and Lana…or you’re gonna have to deal with me.”

He glared at me then looked around at everyone. His eyes landed on Chloe and they stayed there for longer then I liked before he looked back at me.

“This isn’t over Clark…I’ll be back Lana isn’t yours to worry about anymore…you have your own wife…so stay away from mine!”

He turned on his heel and walked out. Lana gave me a small smile and then moved over by Chloe. I stood there looking at the spot Lex had just left.

I couldn’t deal with much more of him…I’ve been trying so hard to stay calm…but Lex was pushing me and I didn’t know how much longer I’d be able to hold out before I finally just let go…a person can only be pushed for so long before they start pushing back…

__________________
The Bible is so powerful. It's not to be left on your shelf. It's to outline even the simplest scriptures that can mean so much in building yourself up.

"I am God's workmanship." (Ephesians 2:10)

"I have been redeemed and forgiven." (Colossians 1:14)

"I am the salt and the light of the earth." (Matthew 5:13-14)

David Harvey
Morrisville, NC
davidharvey25@nc.rr.com
 

 
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