Chapter 41:
Lex pulled at his hair. This was getting to be a bad habit. He swallowed back the feeling that the walls were closing in around him. This was not going as planned. He smoothed his locks back, trying to calm himself with the motion, and pulled his lips taut. "Okay. So what you're telling me is that we're basically at square one."
"Not square one. Maybe square three. I do still have my original notes and formulas to work off of. It's just a matter of timing, finding the right combination, finding some minor test subjects, maybe mice or even rabbits—"
"It's not going to be ready for human testing yet?!"
Miranda rolled her eyes. "What do you think square one means, Lex?"
"You said you have the formulas," he accused, jutting out his chin stubbornly.
"Yes, ones that weren't quite right last time I worked on the project even. It's not ready. You're gonna have to wait."
Lex muttered some choice words under his breath. Of course this was how it would be. He picked up a vial of something blue and viscous and examined it disinterestedly. "Where was this caution last time around? As I recall, you were basically handing it out like aspirin and making note of the results."
"Things have changed, Lex. I'm reformed now, no thanks to you."
"Well that's all fine and dandy for you, but I need results, and I need them now. So you can shove your new-found morals and run some damn tests."
She snatched the bottle out of his hands and carefully nestled it back into its slot with an expression of disdain. "Pheromones are a tricky business. One percent too much and, well, you saw what happened to poor Bucky. I could give you a pill, make this all go much quicker, but you're still gonna have to wait."
His lips turned down again. Bucky. Yeah, he wanted Lois' affections, but not at that cost. Months of rehabilitation still hadn't completely corrected the issue. Lexcorp's insurance policy would be covering his expenses for the rest of his days. "I'm not looking to roofie my girlfriend, I just want the pheromones to trigger her. To remind her how she feels for me."
"Then, you're gonna have to wait."
He thumped the table angrily. "I swear to God, if you say that one more time, I'm going to lose it."
A throat cleared from behind him, prompting Lex to turn around. Nigel stood there, stoic as ever, mouth turned down. Lex felt his shoulders slump down with a sigh.
"New project, sir?"
Lex ignored the barb and crossed the room to him. "What is it, Nigel?"
His eyes didn't stay with him, instead flitting over to the blonde in the corner. "Surprised to see you back, Miranda."
"Surprised to see you still here, Nigel," she sing-songed at him from across the room.
"Stop it, both of you." Lex grabbed the corner of Nigel's sleeve and turned him around so he wasn't facing the woman. A tick of irritation flashed across the old man's face. "What is it?"
"What is she doing back? You fired her years ago."
"It's not relevant. Now tell me."
Nigel craned his neck around only to see the chemist engrossed in her lab equipment yet again, and he sighed as he turned back to face Lex. "I'm afraid we have a bit of a problem. Our friend in blue has been snooping around one of our facilities downtown."
Lex frowned. "That's a bit bizarre behavior from the man of steel."
"I concur. So..?"
"So what?"
Nigel shoved his hands in his pockets deep, rocked on the balls of his feet. "Shouldn't we be doing something about him meddling around on our property?"
Lex's eyes shot over to Nigel's, and he found something different about his expression. He couldn't quite put a finger on it. It almost looked like fear... but it couldn't be fear, could it? He'd never imagined Nigel St. John afraid of anything in all his life. "No."
There it was again. That little flinch that ran through his system. Interesting.
"May I ask why not?"
Lex pursed his lips and picked up his jacket from where it lay over the stainless steel countertop. He draped the fabric over his arm, keeping the folds perfectly aligned in the pressed creases of the fabric so as not to wrinkle it unnecessarily. "Several reasons come to mind. First of all, it's not "our" property as much as "my" property. Second, I have no quarrel with that devil right now. We've come to an impasse, of sorts. He stays out of my way, I'll stay out of his."
"He's not staying out of your way."
He looked to the ceiling as though praying for strength. Nigel had been getting on his last nerve lately, constantly pestering him about Lois Lane or Clark Kent and if he'd learned anything more yet. Overly concerned about what was going on, and it definitely didn't inspire Lex to share anything more with the man. "He's not giving me any grief right now. And I'd prefer it if things stayed that way for the time being."
"Long enough for you to finish up whatever project you have going on with Miranda?"
Lex gave him a dead-eyed stare. "Yes. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting to go to. Let me know if there's any more progress, Miranda."
"Will do," she shouted across at him.
*****LnC*****
Nigel stared after his boss as he left the laboratory, heart pounding in his chest. He toyed with the crisp white cuffs of his sleeves anxiously. He didn't know how he could convince him to go after Kent's alter ego any more than he'd tried. Instead he was focused on Kent so much he was ignoring the bigger picture.
Clark Kent had superpowers, inexplicable gifts from above that could harm them all with a single foul mood. But worse than that, he was pretending to be a good guy. Therefore, there was no back up plan if he decided on a whim to go after them, and there would be no one to stop him. He would always get in the way of any revenge plot they cooked up. But he couldn't just come out and say it. Not yet, anyway. He needed insurance. A surefire way to get the hero out of the picture, so he could deal with the man behind the cape retroactively.
He had to have a weakness. Somehow, someway.
"Did I hear you two talking about a certain man in tights?"
The woman's melodic voice made him turn with a sigh. "What of it, Miranda?" He did not like this woman. She was bad news.
"Oh, nothing. Just looking for guinea pigs, you know. For the latest and greatest project of mine."
His interest piqued suddenly. "Guinea pigs, you say?"
She smiled at him with that way she had, tongue poking out between her teeth, and she slid her goggles up to the top of her head. "I hear they call him the man of steel. Is that a euphemism, or is he really that indestructible?"
Nigel gave her a facetious smile, but his mind started to spin already. Physically, Clark had proven so far his strength, speed, and durability. And of course, he was nearly impossible to pin down, what with the flying and all. But his mind and his emotions... that was another thing altogether. He leaned back against the countertop and folded his arms. "What did you have in mind?"
*****LnC*****
"The Beckworth State School, founded in 1953, is dedicated to fulfilling the educational needs of orphaned children who require the individual attention and specialized instruction available in a controlled environment."
"Translation: brats."
Lois turned away from the pamphlet to look at the man pressed snuggly against her right shoulder. "Really?"
"What?"
"You of all people."
Clark shrugged, mirth shining back at her. "I guess it takes one to know one."
She smacked his arm with the pamphlet, and he laughed. His laugh loosened a knot in her stomach. She hadn't heard very many of his laughs—huffs of amusement, smirks, small chuckles. But the way his face split into this megawatt grin, how his voice filled the space of the cab but wasn't too loud... it made her laugh in return, almost a giggle. It was a heady feeling.
"Can we focus, please?"
Lois scowled, all the laughter suddenly subsiding. "Why you gotta be a buzzkill, Jimmy?"
The kid rolled his eyes and crossed his arms on the other side of her. Lois rolled her eyes back at him in turn and turned back towards the supportive partner in the cab. "Touchy much. Anyway, we have a lot of work to do. What do you think is the situation?"
Kent didn't meet her eyes as he shook his head, somber once again. "I don't want to speculate. It's too bad a story if I do."
Lois understood immediately his fear. "You think there was kidnapping involved?"
Clark grimaced. "Or worse. Sadly, these sort of stories are more common than you'd think. I knew of three back in Kansas alone. Estranged parents who wanted their kids back without the state's approval, kids who got themselves into more trouble than they realized, people who took advantage..."
Lois' hand hovered over his thigh, wanting to provide comfort in the form of a touch, before she was made acutely aware of her surroundings. She let the hand float there gently a moment, so that he caught the motion, and returned it to her own leg.
Wow. This cab was entirely too small and cramped for the heat of his gaze. She crossed her legs and leaned over the cracked leather of the cabbie's seat. "Can't you get around this guy? We're kind of on a time crunch."
"Yeah, you and everybody else. Welcome to Metropolis."
"You know, you could lose the attitude."
"Lady, there's an accident ahead. Not much I can do about the flow of traffic."
She huffed and sank back into her seat disdainfully. Clark's dark chuckle did not help the situation. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out his wallet, rifling through it and passing a few bills the cabbie's way. "We can walk from here. Thanks for your time."
"Walk? Really?"
He was already out of the car, and she hefted her purse over her shoulder with a grumble. "Come on, Jimmy. He's on the move. Kansas! Wait up!"
Clark stopped in his tracks at the name, glancing around himself nervously before turning back to face them with a saccharine smile. "Sorry. Just a little impatient about this one."
Lois couldn't tell if it was the nickname or the case that was giving him the jitters, eyeing him carefully. She glanced at the photographer behind her, finally catching up with his camera bag in tow, and decided to obsess over that question later. "It's fine. Let's check it out."
The Beckworth School was essentially how she'd imagined it. Lots of children milling about, wearing mostly miserable expressions. It was sad, but as Kent had pointed out earlier, it was a reality of life. Just because it wasn't an issue she'd dealt with a lot didn't mean it wasn't worth acknowledging.
She took a moment to be thankful she'd never had to deal with this. She'd been nearly eighteen when she left home, old enough to strike out on her own. She got a scholarship, and a job, and made her way through the tough times slowly but surely, fighting tooth and nail for every inch she could gain in this world. Lucy had been lucky in a different way. When their father was hauled off, Lucy was able to stay with her mother's sister, escaping the fate that so many of these children were now facing. It was an unsettling reminder that things could always be worse. She dragged a careful eye over Clark's form, tense and fidgety, anxiety keeping his posture rigid, and was reminded that not everyone got so lucky.
A young girl tugged on her skirt, stopping her short. Lois tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and knelt down to the girl's level. "Hello. What's your name?"
The girl looked about herself shyly, unsure of herself suddenly. "Ines."
"Ines!" Clark's voice boomed loudly behind her, startling Lois a bit. "Uh, Lois, this is the girl I was telling you about."
Ines looked at him quizzically before turning to face Lois more fully. "Are you her? Lois Lane? From the Daily Planet?"
Lois turned back to catch the tail end of Clark's wink at the girl, and smiled at him. "Uh, yeah. Yes, I am. Clark says your sister is missing?"
She nodded vigorously. "Aymee. She came back the other night, but she left again yesterday. I don't understand what's wrong with her."
Goosebumps traveled up her arm. She was starting to see why Clark was feeling haunted by this case. The little girl could have been straight out of a horror movie, and it was hard to keep her mind from writing a dark narrative for young Aymee. "What's going on with Aymee, Ines? Has she been acting any differently lately?"
"Yeah. Weird. She keeps talking about escaping, and she promised she'd take me with her. And she's smart. Like grown-up smart. And she thinks I don't hear her, but she's been crying herself to sleep at night."
"Ines?" Their unenthusiastic tour guide interrupted, and the girl went silent. "What are you doing bugging our guests? Shouldn't you be in class?"
"It's not a bother, Mrs. Powell," Clark cut in, his voice tight as he tried to hold back his obvious rage. "Ines was just telling us a story. I love kids. Ines is a perfect sweetheart."
The heavyset woman's eyes ran over his form distastefully, and she grunted. "Irregardless, she needs to be in her class now. So run along."
"Yes, Mrs. Powell."
Ines turned tail and ran, scurrying off at a frightened clip. Lois felt her heart pound faster. What kind of a school was this place? She looked at their guide with her mouth slightly ajar.
The woman only shrugged. "These kids have great imaginations. Shall we continue?"
Lois turned to look down the hallway Ines took off down, craning her neck to see if the girl was still within eyesight. She felt Clark's hand press into the small of her back, making small, soothing motions. Her shoulders slumped, and she turned to look at her partner. He leaned in close, pretending to press a kiss to her temple as he whispered in her ear and even miming the action sent a shiver down her spine. "We'll get her back. Let's see what else there is to find."
He was right, so she smiled at their 'gracious' host and continued on their tour.
