~~~Part 20~~~
"Nigel, I think I might attend the meeting myself tonight. I'm in the mood for a little sport, and watching Daly beg for her life might be amusing." Lex smiled at himself in the mirror as he finished knotting his bow tie. He straightened it. There. Perfect.
"She's disappeared, sir. She may not even show up."
He gave himself one last glance, just to appreciate fine cut of the tuxedo, before he turned to face Nigel. "Have some of our associates convince Ms. Daly to make an appearance at tonight's meeting." Lex spared a glance down to adjust each of his cufflinks in turn. "Make sure they understand what will happen if she isn't in attendance."
"Very good, sir. Anything else?"
"No, Nigel, that will be all. Thank you."
Lex turned back to face the mirror as his most trusted associate withdrew from his study. The Metropolis Charity Gala today would be tedious as it was every year, but afterward would prove to be quite entertaining. A little light relief before the real fun began.
He walked over to his desk and looked down on the stock photograph of the boy wonder above the article announcing his pathetic attempt at a rescue. A regrettably poor comeback for the hero. "Yes, Superman, in action how like an angel. In apprehension how like a god. Someone ought to tell Mr. Shakespeare that gods... are never anxious."
Lex admired the alluring green glow of his latest acquisition for another moment longer before he let the lid of the lead box fall shut with a snap.
***
Pete sighed as he unlocked the door to the meager hotel room the agency had secured for him. He waited until Elle had followed him in, and then shut the door after her.
He was having trouble believing just how... stubborn Elle was. Not to mention brave, but he wasn't going to let her know he thought that; she seemed to get most of her courage from verbally assaulting him. And he certainly wasn't going to tell her that he was *letting* her.
She was being difficult, though. A bundle of nerves hidden behind a tough exterior. It would be almost endearing, if it weren't so aggravating.
The room was freezing... and no wonder; he'd left the air conditioning on full blast. In September. Because... It'd been nice after the humidity of the Congolese jungle? He rolled his eyes inwardly and crossed the room to the unit underneath the window. He turned the dial to off and then shut the curtains all the way.
A whole minute and not a peep from Little Miss Feisty. Not to mention she'd been silent the entire drive over to the hotel. Somehow, he had a feeling his luck in that area was about to change.
"Cold enough in here, Romero?"
Pete was tempted to look around for someone who must have given her a cue. Instead, he turned around and gave her a patronizing smile. "It's off now."
"You'd think you were trying to raise penguins in here or something."
He rolled his eyes. Honestly. He ignored her and made his way over to the small table and its two chairs. Mismatched chairs. The agency had really gone all out, though he supposed it could have been worse. He made a production of pulling out a chair and presenting it to her with a flourish and a wicked grin.
"I hope the accommodations are acceptable for her Highness, despite the unfortunate chill in the air, of course." He paused and continued under his breath, "But I can't be entirely certain it was from the air conditioning."
Elle sat down in a huff, crossing her arms in front of her chest, and apparently stuck searching for a witty comeback.
He grinned as he sat across from her. "So, Ms. Daly... oh, I'm sorry, *Elle*. Ready to share all your dirty little secrets?" He waggled his eyebrows just to unsettle her more.
She narrowed her eyes at him. "I suppose I don't have a choice, do I?"
"Nope." Liar. If she'd wanted to leave, she could have; she'd had a number of opportunities to get away. He was glad she hadn't, though. He hadn't had this much fun in a while. He grinned again and prompted her to continue with a suggestive lift of his eyebrows.
Pete was pretty sure he heard her grumble under her breath, but he couldn't make out what she'd said. He leaned back, hitched one leg up to rest atop the other, threaded his hands behind his head, and waited. "I'm all ears, babe."
He got a perverse pleasure out of watching her jaw drop in astonishment. A small twinge of guilt hit him, but he reminded himself he was doing this for her benefit. To make her forget she ought to be scared out of her wits. His amusement was just one of the perks, was all.
She finally managed to gain control of the lower half of her mouth, but before she started talking, she fired off another look of death to rival the one she'd given him in the diner. He was almost surprised when she leaned forward, arms folded neatly on the table, and said, "Listen, sweetheart, call me 'babe' one more time, and you're a dead man."
"Fair enough," he conceded with a smile. "I'm still waiting, though."
"Fine, then." Elle rolled her eyes and blew out an exasperated breath. Her tone softened, though, and it threw him a bit off guard. "It was about eight months ago when Joe, my... boss at the time, let me know about a 'business opportunity'. Good pay, and off the books. I was a little..." She grimaced. "A lot behind on rent, so I jumped at the chance." She paused and seemed to be watching the past on an imaginary screen somewhere to her right.
Pete relaxed his position, letting his arms fall to his sides and leaning forward again. He stayed quiet, waiting for her to continue.
"Little girl from a small town, trying to make it in the big city." She gave a self-depreciating chuckle.
She didn't seem to be talking to him directly anymore... Lost in her memories, he guessed. All the sarcasm and bravado disappeared before his eyes... as if he'd turned them off rather than the frigid gust of air from the cooling unit.
"I think I also fancied the idea of being a rebel and breaking the rules. But... I didn't know..."
He was just about to ask what it was she didn't know when she blurted out her next words.
"I never thought they'd kill Joe."
Oh boy. This woman had more layers than an onion. He half suspected her of melodramatic tendencies, but he knew that wasn't the case. He knew the tone in her voice all too well...
Pete shook his head to clear his thoughts. He looked again at Elle. Dammit. There were tears in her eyes. He *hated* it when women cried. Biting back a growl, Pete did his best to be sympathetic without seeming like a total pushover.
He resisted reaching to cover her hand with his and asked gently, "Why did they kill him?"
She looked startled for a glimpse of a second, like she'd forgotten where she was... and who she was talking to. Pete watched as her shields crept back into place, disappointed that he'd witnessed a crack in her defenses and a bit of the real Elle showing through only to have it disappear in a flash. But at the same time... he was looking forward to resuming their verbal jousting match. Game on.
She took a deep breath and rushed through the rest of her explanation without a hint of emotion... if he didn't count the supreme indignation.
"About a month into the operation, I realized what was really going on. I wasn't supposed to know, but I found out that the woman I was instructed to be on the lookout for had been imprisoned... and then I found out why... what she'd been investigating."
She paused for a moment, as if she were trying to detach herself emotionally from what she was relating to him. Pete said nothing.
"I wanted out. Only I hadn't realized that this wasn't the sort of job you could just quit from. Especially if the Boss found out you knew more than you were supposed to know. Joe had an accident a few days after I'd threatened to quit. Only it wasn't an accident. It was a warning for me. I was given two choices: stay or die."
Pete swallowed thickly. He'd known Luthor was ruthless, but...
"I... I'm just glad I was the one assigned to the airport the day Lois Lane got back. If they're going to kill me, at least I was able to give her a head start. One of us should live."
He was about to sympathize with her until she cleared her throat loudly.
"Anyway, if they weren't having me monitored at the airport, my absence from tonight's meeting will put a nail in my coffin for sure." She exhaled and shrugged, as if she hadn't just told him she was marked for certain death by one of the most evil criminal masterminds in the country.
Maybe the gal had a little more gumption than he'd given her credit for. But he couldn't dwell on that; she'd said something about a meeting. This was new information. Quite possibly useful.
"So, Petey, now that you've heard my fascinating tale..." Her eyes narrowed, he assumed to try and belie the slight tremor she still held in her voice. "What's the plan?"
She wanted a plan, eh? And she wanted to pretend she was fine and had the upper hand? Well, she was in for a big surprise. He gave her a sly grin. Elle Daly was his ticket to the evidence he needed against Luthor.
Pete leveled a challenging stare at her. "Take off your shirt."
TBC...
