The Foundling - Matchmaker Style
Rated PG-13
* * denotes emphasis
< > denotes thoughts
As always comments are welcome. (ken.janney@kjanney.com)
Previously
Evening had come and gone. Now it was nighttime, dark as pitch especially in the alley that Jack had specified as the meeting place for the sale of the gizmo.
Jack was nervous. He knew that what he had was pure dynamite. It had to be to get a response this quickly. He kept looking around and up, afraid that Superman would somehow find him and …
His musings were interrupted by the noise of people approaching. He couldn't see them clearly in the dark, but that meant that they couldn't see him too well either and he liked it that way.
Slowly, as they neared, he could make out the outlines of two men in long overcoats. They were walking Indian file, one behind the other. The one in the rear had a hat pulled low and he kept his head bowed so that the brim concealed his face.
The one in the lead, Nigel St. John stepped forward and pulled the picture of Jor-El from his pocket and held it up for Jack to see. He said, "You have something for me?"
Jack took a step closer, warily. He nodded to Luthor and asked, "Who's he?"
Nigel ignored the question and asked, "Where is the item?"
Jack was scared, but the lure of the money was too strong, he stammered out, "It's … It's a thou … thousand."
In response, Nigel reached into an inside pocket.
Seeing the movement, Jack ducked thinking that Nigel could be reaching for a firearm. When he saw the corner of a white envelope appear from the coat instead of a gun, his confidence was restored and his bravado with it. "Let's see it."
Nigel extracted ten one hundred dollar bills from the envelope and fanned them out.
Jack reached for the money, but Nigel withdrew it. "The item, then the money."
Jack reached behind the dumpster that he had been standing next to and picked up his canvas bag. Delving into it he pulled out the sphere, wrapped in a kerchief. As he started to unwrap it the glow was evident.
Luthor spoke with a voice horse with excitement, "We were led to believe that there was a display."
"Yeah. Some dude in a white outfit."
As he finished speaking the globe started to float and the light beams formed the hologram. Jor-El was visible and they could see that he was speaking, but they didn't hear anything."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Across town at 344 Clinton, Lois and Clark were having a late dinner and talking about the situation of the break-in when suddenly they both ‘heard',
"This is the second of the five times ..."They were both startled and Clark bolted upright.
They exchanged a look and Lois asked, "Do you think you can zero in on its location?"
"I'm not sure." Standing up he started to turn around, trying to sense where it was coming from, but before he could get more than a general impression the signal was cut off.
Lois felt the signal cut off the same time Clark did and said, "Rats! It cut off. Were you able to get a direction?"
"Just a general direction - Suicide Slum."
Grumpily, Lois replied, "Figures."
"Either it was working for someone else or else it started itself again the way it did last time."
"Let's hope it's the latter."
"Yeah. I'd hate to think it would work for someone else."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Jack threw the kerchief over the globe, the projection stopped and it settled back in his hand.
In a horse voice, Luthor said, "Pay him."
Nigel held out both hands in one was one thousand dollars and the other was empty, palm up.
As Jack snatched the money he dropped the globe in Nigel's open hand.
Trying to make it sound like idle conversation, Luthor spoke up again, "You found this, you say?"
While Jack was counting the money, he said, "In a dumpster on Third. People throw away strange stuff sometimes." He was hoping that his fabrication was being accepted and continued in an attempt to deflect, "I guess it has something to do with Superman."
Luthor wasn't put off and asked, "If you find any more 'strange stuff,' you'll let us know?"
Jack had started to turn away, but said, back over his shoulder, "I'll do that. How do I get in touch?"
Luthor replied, "Just leave word. We'll find you."
As Jack's form retreated back down the alley, Luthor held out his gloved hand and Nigel handed it over. Luthor's head came up and Jack got a bare glimpse of his features when he looked back. He heard Luthor say, "Something to do with Superman."
And Now
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Chapter 5
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Lois awoke the next morning, finding herself in bed with the distinct memory of having fallen asleep in Clark's arms on the sofa while they were watching an old movie. Their sleep hadn't been disturbed by the mental messages the rest of the night. She stretched and reached for Clark, but his side of the bed was empty.
She frowned and started to sit up. She was taking a deep breath to call Clark, but pulling the air in through her nose also brought with it the scent of freshly brewed coffee, toast, bacon and eggs. Her frown turned upside down into a smile and she muttered to herself, "You just gotta love that man."
As if he had heard her, which he probably had, he stuck his head around the partition and said, "Breakfast will be ready as soon as you are."
Jumping out of bed she headed for the bathroom and said, "Be there in two shakes." Realizing that her shakes were slower than his, she said, "Better make that three."
He smiled and said, "Take your time."
When she came out and sat at the table she started laughing as if to a joke.
Clark asked, "What's so funny?"
"Cat and Jimmy. They have this bet about their families. Jimmy claims that they have to be related, Cat can't stand the idea that she might be. The look on Cat's face at the very idea was priceless. If Cat wins then Jimmy has to paint her apartment."
"And if he wins?"
"Cat gets another notch on her headboard, or would it be Jimmy?"
"I don't know who to root for."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
When Clark and Lois walked out of the elevator, Lois immediately spotted Jimmy and Cat at Cat's desk. They had sheets of paper spread out. It looked like they were researching something for her column, so Perry hadn't said anything.
As Lois was approaching her desk, Cat let out an unladylike snort and as she pointed at an entry on one of the sheets of paper which apparently contained a family tree said, "Your Great-Uncle Howard married the same woman twice?"
Jimmy was warming to his topic and said, "Well, see, he didn't
realize it was the same woman ... until after." He paused to recall and then said, "Howard had poor eyesight, and Aunt Millie suffered from a hormonal imbalance. She used to go through these huge weight fluctuations."
The possibility that their families might actually at some point intersect and she would be related to Jimmy caused a cold chill to run down her spine and a feeling of terror overtook Cat. She said, "If it does turn out we have any of the same genes, I'm having mine altered."
Smiling at Cat's quandary, Lois sat at her desk and booted up her computer. Once it was up, even before checking her e-mail, Lois brought her word processor up and started typing up her article, using her and Clark's personal experience as the basis. She started slowly, but as she warmed to her topic her typing sped up until she was typing furiously.
She stopped to review what she had written, "And so the cycle repeats itself. Stolen goods traveling from owner, to thief, to fence, to wholesaler, to retailer, and finally to a new and unsuspecting owner ..." Clark had drifted over and listened in on the last part. Lois looked up and asked, "You think it's too wordy?"
Clark had rolled his chair over by her so that he could look over her shoulder. Lois noticed that he was less than his usual alert, bright-eyed self. While she watched he yawned, shrugged, and then tiredly rubbed the back of his neck. Lois stopped typing and rolled her chair backwards so that she was behind him and started massaging his neck. She quipped, "You're so tight! You're like iron."
Turning it into a joke he corrected her, "Steel."
She chuckled and asked, "Didn't you sleep well, honey? We got to bed at a reasonable time."
"Actually, I lay awake watching you sleep and thinking … I guess I was worrying. That globe …"
Coming to the realization that she could wear herself out trying to massage the ‘man of steel' with nothing, but tired hands to show for it, Lois stopped and slid back under her desk.
He surprised her when he asked, "Why did you stop? That felt good."
"Really? You felt that?"
"Of course I feel that. I can't be hurt, but I can feel everything, especially when it's my wife doing the touching."
Lois smiled and resumed her massage. "Did you finish the inventory list?"
"No."
Moving so that she could look him in the face, she asked, "Clark, why are you stalling on that?"
"Oh, I'm not, it's just that … what do I put in about the globe?"
"Just list everything else and hope that the globe turns up with the rest of the stuff."
"Yeah, I guess we could do that. How's the article coming? I liked the part you read to me."
"I plan to put in your list. See, I put the list in the article as an example of how some people get unreasonably, sentimentally attached to their old junk. Not that it's junk to you, because of the sentimentality quotient."
"Lois, you're right. Aside from the globe there isn't a lot there that can't be replaced. Maybe we should just forget the whole thing."
Lois was shocked. She could see a good part of her article disappearing and blurted out, "You can't do that." She paused to think of a good reason for him to continue, "What about Louie?"
Clark shrugged and said, "There's no way that guy will come up with anything."
Lois was disappointed at his reply and was about to say something when her phone rang. She picked up the receiver and said, "Daily Planet, Lois Lane." When she heard the voice on the other end she started to smile, "Louie!"
Clark was surprised and refrained from listening in.
Lois said, "You did? That's wonderful. Uh, huh. We'll be right over. Thanks a bunch." As she hung up the phone she said, "Remind me to call Connie. Come on Clark. Let's go collect our stuff."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
As on the previous occasion, the guy that had said his name was Willy was loitering outside the pool hall. This time, when Lois approached he refused to take her money, but still moved over to watch the car. The fact that she was a friend of Louie's had been made known to him.
Clark joined Lois and they entered the pool hall. Lois spotted Louie across the room at his booth with one of the pool players and dragging Clark headed in that direction.
When Lois was standing in front of Louie, she challenged, "All right, where is he?"
Louie looked up from his sandwich and jerked a thumb toward the far wall.
Turning in that direction, Lois and Clark saw Jack sitting hunched against the wall with his hands behind his back. He had a sullen and yet stubborn expression. On a pool table next to him was a pile of goods which Clark immediately recognized as ‘their' stuff.
Turning to Louie, Clark asked, "Are you sure he's the one?"
Unfazed, Louie pointed at the pile of Clark's belongings and asked, "That your stuff?"
Clark sorted through it and then said, "Most of it."
Lois picked up on his tone and whispered to him, "The globe?"
He whispered back, "Missing."
"Oh, no."
Louie explained, "Kid tried to move it through a guy who knows a guy I know." Louie held up a thousand dollars in hundred dollar bills, "Had this on him too. Yours?"
Seeing what he was holding, Clark said, "No."
Louie offered the money to Lois and after a moment of thought she took it and she and Clark approach Jack. Clark could tell that Jack was scared. His heart was racing and there was a sheen of sweat on his forehead, but he was putting on a tough act.
Jack's bravado surfaced and he said, "That's my money, lady."
Lois challenged, "You robbed our apartment?"
Jack tried the same subterfuge he had used on Luthor, "I found that junk in a dumpster. I should of left it there."
Lois could see that Clark was weakening. He always had a soft heart. It was one of the things that had endeared him to her even before the memory transfer
Clark asked Jack, "How old are you?"
Jack sensed that he might have an out with this guy and shot back, "How old are
you? Look, I don't know anything. Just let me go." He moved his arms to the side and displayed the handcuffs that in fact were on his wrists.
Lois looked at Louie with a reproving look, "Louie!"
Louie shrugged and nodded to the pool player who threw the keys to Lois.
As Lois was catching the keys and moving toward Clark and Jack, Louie said, "Careful. You got yourself a real rabbit there."
Lois, taking his meaning hesitated, but only for a second. Clark encouraged her, "We're not the law, Lois. He's just a kid."
Lois gave in, nodded to Clark and reached to release the cuffs.
Once the cuffs were off, Jack started rubbing his chafed wrists. Now that he was released his bravado increased, "Yeah, I could sue you for kidnapping.”
Louie said, "Ya got me quakin' in my boots, kid."
Lois stood her ground, "I'm waiting for an answer. Did you rob our apartment?"
Jack kept silent, but his eyes were darting this way and that as he evaluated his possible escape routes.
Shaking the money she still held in her hand, Lois challenged, "Where'd you get all of this money?"
Clark interrupted this line of questioning, "Look, this doesn't have to go to the police. I just want to ask you some questions about ... some personal items that are still missing. One in particular."
At this statement, Jack looked up quickly, then, just as quickly, dropped his eyes again. Jack realized that this guy was saying that he knew the gizmo belonged to Superman, but he wasn't saying any more. If he identified him to Superman he would be in deep trouble. He needed to get that money and get out of there as fast as he could then he and Denny needed to put as much distance between themselves and Metropolis as possible.
Clark had been watching and this was exactly the reaction Clark was hoping for. Jack’s heart rate kicked up and his pupils dilated slightly.
As Lois started to speak, his fear spurred him to action.
Lois was saying, "You could save yourself a lot of trouble …" He jumped up, grabbed the cash from Lois's hand and fled. Lois shouted, "Hey!" at his retreating back.
Louie's pool playing pal tried to make a grab for Jack as he passed, but he missed.
Seeing him go, Lois shouted, "Clark, grab him!"
Even though he passed close to Clark, he made no try at stopping him.
After he was past, Clark said, "I'll go after him."
Lois realized that Clark probably thought that one-on-one he might be able to get more information so she simply nodded.
As Clark rushed out, Louie chuckled and said, "Like I said, a real rabbit."
After Clark exited, Lois moved over and started going through the pile of stuff that had been stolen from the apartment. She found some photos and gasped when she saw them. Pictures of Jor-El and the globe showing the continents of Krypton. She quickly pocketed the evidence.
Louie had heard her gasp and asked, "Problem, sweetheart?"
"No, Louie. There's just evidence here that proves the kid was lying."
"You want we should catch ‘im again and maybe, toss him around a little? Get the truth outta him."
"No, Louie, I think we'll handle it Clark's way from this point on."
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